Where The Roses Are
by TheBaeTide
Summary: Rick and Michonne appear to be two very different teenagers on the surface, but a string of events lead them to recognise each other, developing a better understanding of what they're coming from and what they're up against. AU. No walkers. High school. Some LoRick.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One:

"I've got the worst break out. Like seriously, look at my skin. It just looks… dull. I drink like, ton of water every day, and I still look like a damn zombie"

Michonne glanced at Lori as shoved her books in her locker, resisting the urge to roll her eyes at her friend's amateur dramatics, "You look fine.."

The brunette ignored her, "Will a face mask make it worse? I want to try one but…"

"It's fine."

"My mom thinks that I'm allergic to this new soap I've been using, but I'm not breaking out anywhere else. It's literally just on my face…", She snapped the mirror shut with a huff, dropping her head against the locker door.

"There's nothing there, so _stop_ stressing. That will make it worse", Michonne countered firmly, giving Lori an unimpressed look.

The girl pouted, smoothing her cheerleading uniform, "Alright. Fine. You're right. You're always right"

"I am", Michonne smirked, her eyes tracing over the contents of her locker.

"Well… Since you're always right…", Lori began to grin at her, "How about you help me before my English test tomorrow? Lunch time?"

Michonne cringed, giving her an apologetic look, "Field trip"

Lori's shoulders fell, "Oh yeah. I forgot. Rick's going too"

She nodded, closing her locker door.

Her friend let out a little gasp, "Then how about-"

"Hey."

Michonne didn't immediately look at the male teen that greeted them when he approached their lockers. She quite frankly, didn't want to, and she was sure the feeling was mutual.

"Hey!", Lori chirped, wearing a large smile as she beamed at her boyfriend, "We were just talking about you"

Michonne had only just been in her locker, but she needed somewhere to hide, so she opened the door again.

"Yeah?", He rasped in a questioning tone.

"You're going on that field trip tomorrow, right? You're both abandoning me here"

"Oh yeah.. to the museum or somethan'..."

Michonne began rearranging her books, purely to look as if she was busy, and not eavesdropping on their conversation.

"Well the good news is, I got my mom to reschedule my doctor's appointment so I'll be here to cheer you on, on Friday", Lori excitedly rose on her toes, bouncing like a small child.

"Oh yeah? That's great", her boyfriend didn't sound as excited, but Michonne was sure he was giving her his trademark crooked smile.

"I'm hoping a certain someone…", Lori nudged Michonne, "Will come along"

She glanced at her friend with a raised brow, "Count me out"

"Oh come on!", Lori urged, "Rick tell her, please? She thinks they're boring"

Michonne hated when Lori tried to encourage the two of them to interact with each other, "How about you go, and you have fun for the both of us"

"Just one game! I don't ask you for much…"

She looked at the other girl with disbelief, _"You_ don't ask me for much?"

Lori rolled her eyes, "Okay, maybe I do. But just one game! You've never even seen me cheer before!"

"I don't need to. I know you're great at it-"

"One game. You stay for thirty minutes, max. You can even bring your boyfriend, what's his name-"

"He's not my boyfriend", Michonne had to close her locker door, after rearranging her books repeatedly.

"Well he might as well be", Lori nudged her again before looking to Rick, "Don't you think her and… Oh shoot, what's his name, uh… Derek?"

"Daryl", Rick corrected, his gaze following Michonne carefully.

"Daryl! That's it. Don't you think they'd make a cute couple?"

Michonne didn't dare look in Rick's direction, instead she scooped up her backpack of the floor and slung it on her shoulder.

"...Sure", He answered dryly.

"See?! We need to set that up-"

"You will not set anything up", Michonne warned as she slowly backed up, "Just call me later"

"Fine!", Lori pouted, "Bye!"

Michonne finally looked at Rick as she turned away, and sure enough, he was watching her with those piercing blue eyes that made her chest cave.

Harbouring a crush on her friend's boyfriend wasn't something Michonne intended on. Rick was everything she hated about high school. The typical, popular jock that everyone flocked to, desperate to hang out with and eager to please. The same could be said for Lori. They couldn't have been more suited if they tried. Michonne could probably count how many times she had spoken to Rick on one hand, despite Lori's obvious attempts to have them converse.

When she first joined King's High two years prior, she didn't think she would strike up a friendship with the head cheerleader. At her old school in the city, Lori was the type of girl Michonne would cross oceans to avoid, but they somehow managed to bond, despite having little to nothing in common. Michonne found enjoyment out of winding the girl up, challenging her on almost everything she done, and Lori found enjoyment in trying to make Michonne 'brighten up'. It was a strange friendship, and she was sure that Lori's other friends weren't impressed, but neither cared.

The first time Lori introduced Michonne to Rick, she was sure her friend's boyfriend thought the same. Michonne caught him looking at her oddly a few times, and there was an intensity in his eyes that made her feel uncomfortable, so she decided from that point that she wouldn't look at him. Whenever he was around, she would do everything humanly possible to look elsewhere, until one fateful day when she found herself unable to look away.

She often sat on the bleachers during in lunchtime or afterschool, reading a book in peace, and unfortunately for her, in the presence for the football team when they practiced. She usually ignored them, but for reasons unbeknownst to her, she happened to look up when she heard his laugh. Rick was with his friends, in his black and white football uniform, chuckling away at whatever antidote the teens shared, and his smile captivated her. She recorded every little line and crease on his face, feeling a flutter in her stomach as she watched him. That moment changed everything for her, and she realised that she had found a valid reason to avoid him. The boy was simply beautiful, and simply off limits.

"Where were you today?", Michonne was strolling out of the school building at the end of the day, when she caught sight of another one of her very few friends, sitting on his motorcycle by the curb.

Daryl snorted, flicking his cigarette away, "I was sick"

"That's a lie."

He gave her a pathetic attempt at a cough.

"Oh, so convincing. We need to get you to the emergency room", She quipped flatly, throwing her leg over the back seat.

"I'll live", He snickered, handing her his helmet.

She took the protective gear and pulled it on, then held onto his waist as he started the motor up.

Her friendship with Daryl was a more understanding one. They both shared the same dry sense of humour, and they both enjoyed mocking each other, and others.

When her father first informed her that they would be living in a trailer park, because that was all they could afford, it initially scared Michonne, though she understood the change of scenery. When the man's games company went bust, she knew she would have to say goodbye to the life she knew and they would have to start a new. Daryl lived with his father in the trailer not far from her own, and they greeted each other with snarls before finally becoming friendly. He would often take them home on his motorcycle, or he would pick her up, when he didn't bother to attend school. She knew that underneath his very tough exterior was a person that craved someone familiar to himself, and she liked to think that she offered him that.

The trailer park was often busy in the afternoon, with people hanging around, drinking and smoking while they watched their kids play in the dirt. Daryl parked behind Michonne's mobile home, and the trudged Inside, where the trailer was empty.

"Your pops' at work?", Daryl informed, following her back to her tiny bedroom. There was barely enough room to swing a cat amongst all the canvases and books she had, but they made it work.

"Yeah. He got a new job at the bar", She huffed, throwing her backpack down.

"So he's probably serving mine"

"Probably"

Daryl dropped himself down on the bed and kicked off his boots, "Anythan' interesting happen today?"

"I wish", She sat on the edge of the bed, pulling her own worn out boots off, "Nothing ever happens when you're not there"

"I'm the life of the party, huh?"

"You're usually the reason something's happening", She sniggered as she glanced at him over her shoulder.

Daryl's lip curled, "Pretty much"

She laid back with a huff, looking up at him, "I have a field trip tomorrow"

"Where?"

"The Civil and Human Rights centre. Know it?"

He gave a little shrug as he bit his thumb nail, "Nah."

"Well, we can go get something to eat after I'm done…"

"You have the money for that?"

"Yeah. I still have some money left from that last picture I sold…"

"...I'll make some more just in case"

"Why don't you take that job at the shop? You're pretty good at fixing cars… and you prefer doing that instead of going to so school, so you might as well"

He snorted at her for a second time, "Yeah yeah"

Hanging out with Daryl was something she had grown accustomed to. He would often stay with her all evening, and depending on how intoxicated his father was on his return home, he would stay the night. She hated that he was stuck living with the drunkard, and she knew the teen hated it too, but luckily for the both of them, his father didn't seem to care where his son was.

Michonne worried her own father would soon follow the same path. While he didn't have a problem with alcohol on a daily basis, he often used his days off to join the other men outside the trailer, drinking with them until the early hours of the morning. It didn't help that the man was an emotional drunk, who often broke down in tears when the silence hit him. She would nurse him to his bed, and never mention his confessions again.

The next day Michonne left for school as usual, waking earlier than most students so she could walk the way. She didn't mind, as she used the trek to lose herself in her thoughts. When she arrived at school, she sat outside the building, where students were told to meet for their trip. She was the first one there, so she took to reading one her favourite sci-fi thrillers while perched on the wall.

Students from her class began to arrive, and soon a small group of people formed in front of her. She would occasionally glance up from her book, for no particular reason, then continue on reading, as she didn't care to socialise with anyone.

"Okay! Glad to see you're all here!", Mrs Peletier announced, joining the group with a clipboard in hand, "I'm just going to do a quick roll call and then we'll go over the plan for today"

Michonne flicked the page of her book, only bothering to look up again when she heard her name called, and mustering a, "Here".

"Now, for the tour you'll be in groups because you will be expected to do a presentation on the topics I've assigned you. You should have all brought a notebook or at the very least some paper to take down some notes about the exhibits, because there will be a lot of information available today", Mrs Peletier began handing out sheets of papers to the students, "Groups and topics are on the back!"

Michonne took the paper from the woman and immediately turned it over, desperate to know who she was working with. She could only release a low growl when she saw it was Rick and another student named Glenn. She folded the sheet up and slipped it in the back of the book, wondering if Mrs Peletier had put her with the other teen on purpose.

She quickly stood up and stalked over to the teacher, placing herself right in front of her, "Do we have to do our presentations in groups? How necessary is that?"

The older woman sighed, "My god, it's too early for this. Yes, Michonne, you do-"

"But how necessary is it? What will I gain from working with someone else on this?", Michonne urged, squinting at her.

"Team working skills", The teacher deadpanned.

"I can work in a team, I just don't want to. I prefer to work alone, and I don't think I should be forced to endure-"

"Michonne-"

"You know what? Come to think of it, I don't understand how you can claim that it's necessary for us to work together, when we're all graded individually anyway-"

Mrs Peletier raised her hand to stop her, "Michonne. Please. We do not have time to battle about this, and even if we did, I wouldn't want to, so you are working in groups, just like everybody else, and that's final. Okay?"

The teacher swiftly stepped around her, and Michonne growled again, resisting the urge to stamp her foot in annoyance. She spun back around, ready to march over to the school bus, when she found herself face to face with Rick.

He raised a questioning eyebrow at her, _"...Problem?"_

She let her gaze sail away from him as she inched past him, muttering, "Something like that."

She knew that the day would come that she would eventually have to work with him, but she hoped that she would be lucky enough to not endure such a fate. The only way that she could keep him at arm's length was to make it obvious she had no time for him, and so she sat as far away as possible from him on the bus ride, keeping her head buried in her book. He sat at the back, with his partner in crime Shane, making up a high percentage of the noise.

"Uh, Michonne, right?", The Korean boy approached her cautiously when they exited the vehicle after arriving at their destination.

"Yeah", She huffed, "Glenn, right?"

"Yep. That's me", He nodded, giving her a quick, but friendly smile, before looking to his sheet of paper, "And we're working with-"

"Me.", Rick issued, popping up beside the other teen.

"Uh, yeah. Hey", Glenn gave Rick the same welcome, "So we're doing 'public education'...I think it should be easy enough…"

"Yep. Let's go", Michonne urged, already walking ahead of the two.

While she didn't doubt that Glenn was a nice person, and obviously a friendly one, she needed to figure out a way to work with Rick while avoiding him all the same.

She stayed in front of the other teens, making notes as they followed the flow of the exhibit, and answering any questions Glenn had, only when he spoke directly to her. She often stopped to read the information points, and hurried away when the other two closed in to do the same. She was sure it had come apparent to Glenn that there was some underlying tension growing between she and Rick, as he often spoke unprompted, and rambled on nervously.

"Uh, I need the bathroom", Glenn announced quietly as they stood in a large hall.

"Go ahead. We'll wait here", Rick replied easily, staring at one of the images on the wall.

"But _hurry_ up", Michonne added, for good measure.

"Got it", The teen scurried away, his sneakers scraping the floor, causing the screeching sound to echo.

Michonne kept her eyes on the wall, looking over everyone image meticulously, when she heard Rick gruff, "So what's your problem?"

She forced her gaze to stay where it was, "Excuse me?"

"What's your problem?", He repeated a tad slower.

"...Nothing."

He narrowed his eyes at her, "I don't believe that. We have to work together, so I'd like to get this out the way. So what's your problem?"

"I don't have a problem-"

"What did I do to you?", He quizzed, tilting his head to catch her attention.

She frowned, finally tearing her gaze away from the pictures, "Excuse me?"

"You've always have this attitude on you whenever I'm around, so I want to know if I did somethan' to you?"

"No", She answered firmly.

"So you're just normally like this?"

"Yes", She lied.

His steely blue gaze studied her face, "I don't believe that either"

"Well you don't know me, so believe it", She dismissed in a tone that was much harsher than she intended.

His head jerked back, "No, I don't know you, and I'm not claiming that either, but I do need to get a good grade, so I don't have time for your games"

It was her turn to narrow her eyes at him, "I'm not playing any games-"

"You obviously have a problem with me, you have done for quite some time now, and we have an opportunity here to clear the air, but it seems like you like hiding in your locker, or playing with whatever you can to avoid talking to me…"

Michonne's heartbeat seemed to skip a beat as embarrassment washed over her.

"As I said, I need a good grade. So how about we just grin and bear it while we have to work together, and you can go back to pretending that I don't exist when we're done?"

Michonne did her best to keep her face in a stoic state, "Fine."

"Alright"

They both resumed to their tasks, starting at the exhibit with slightly annoyed expressions, clearly not ready to make good on their pact. Glenn returned after quite some time, and the trio continued on with the tour.

Michonne wanted to kick herself to say the least, and she was shocked to learn that Rick had noticed how hard she tried to keep him out of her line of sight. It wasn't as if she wanted him to realise what she was doing, as she was mostly doing it for her own sanity.

"So… how are we going to do this? We could work on this on our lunch breaks but… I don't think any one of us really want to do that", Glenn queried towards the end of their trip.

"Not really", Rick smirked, gazing at the wall behind Glenn.

"After school? We can meet up at each other's houses… take turns?"

Michonne didn't think there would even be enough space in her home for all of them, "Or… the library in town?"

Glenn nodded, "That works too. So the library, after school? We can start tomorrow-"

"I can't do straight after school...", Rick cringed, "Unless you don't mind meeting up later? Say around four?"

"...That's no good for me, I have to work in my dad's store", Glenn shook his head.

"Then it looks like you're both going to have to sacrifice your precious lunch hour", Michonne ejected dryly, "We can meet up tomorrow and go over our itineraries there"

Glenn looked defeated, but still agreed, "Yeah. Guess you're right"

Rick slowly inhaled, "Alright. Fine"

When their trip finally came to an end, the students all piled back on the bus, and the three teens returned to their friends, all accept Michonne, who sat in the same seat, reading the same book.

She didn't think her little confrontation with Rick had affected her mood, even though she hadn't stopped thinking about it, but she was made aware that she wasn't giving off her usual vibe almost immediately by Daryl.

"What's up with you?", The teen growled for a third time, with a mouth full of fries.

"Nothing", She shrugged, swirling her straw around in her thick chocolate milkshake, "What did you do today?"

"Helped Dale work on his RV."

She nodded, "Cool. You coming in tomorrow? It's Friday… you like Fridays"

He groaned, curling his lip like he always did, "Maybe."

"You don't want them calling your dad in again…"

Daryl scoffed, "If they can find the son of a bitch"

Michonne frowned at him, "What? He still hasn't come home?"

"Nope."

"How long has it been?"

"...I dunno'... a week?"

She dropped her hand from her straw, "Why didn't you tell me? I could have stayed with you-"

"It don't matter. I like having the place to myself"

She watched him for a moment before sighing, "Alright. I'll stay over tonight though"

"You don't have to-"

"But I will."

Michonne hardly ever spent time in Daryl's trailer, purely because she didn't like his father. The found the man creepy, as he was always overly friendly, grabbing her on the shoulders when he greeted her, his breath thick with the smell of alcohol. While it was worrying for her to know that Daryl had been alone, she was secretly glad the man wasn't around to bully her friend.

They arrived back at the trailer park and Michonne headed home for a change of clothes and her books for the next day. Her home was initially quiet when she walked in, but it was only when she was packing her belongings for her stay at Daryl's that she heard noise from her father's room. She stopped and sighed, knowing she had to check on him before she left.

The man was sat on the floor by his bed, a bottle of beer in his hand and wearing only a tank top and sweatpants.

"Oh hey, c-cupcake", He slurred as he looked up at her, his eyes wet with tears, "You off somewhere?"

"Come on, let's get you into bed", She insisted softly, taking him by his arm.

"You don't have to do that, I'm fine"

"No, you're not dad", She used all her strength to pull him up, perching him on the end of his bed.

"I'm so sorry, honey", He began to sob, dropping the bottle to the floor, "I promised your… your mother that I'd take care of you… I s-said I'd take care of both of us and now… and now look… look at us… look at me-"

"It's fine, dad", She huffed, trying to nudge him to lay down.

"No. No. It's not… I lost everything. We lost so much and I can't… I can't even see a way to get it all back…"

She hated having to go over the same conversation with the man, "We have each other, that's more than enough, okay? So just lay down, please"

He looked up at her, swaying, even in his seated position, "I wish you went with her. I do… you would have been better off dead than with me"

Michonne froze, surprised at the brutally honest confession. Her father had never voiced such an opinion before, and it saddened her more than she could believe, "Don't say stuff like that dad-"

"It's the truth… I'm no man, I'm no father… I haven't been a father to you. I haven't done right by you in a long time and… and I don't deserve you. I didn't- didn't deserve your mother too. She… she was an angel…", The man fell back in the bed as he started sobbing again, rolling into the foetal position.

Michonne watched him for a few moments, so used to the sight of the man crying himself to sleep. She stepped out of his room without another word, closing the door behind her.

The following day, she was able to drag Daryl to school with her, despite his protests and snarls. She didn't know why he hated school so much, but the fact that he hadn't dropped out told her that he did like having the option of going, even if it was only two or three days a week.

When they reached the school parking lot, they both climbed off his motorcycle and strolled leisurely to the building.

"I have to work on a presentation at lunch", She informed, gently swinging her backpack in her hand.

"What's that mean?", He quizzed, squinting at her.

"It means I won't be around... unless you don't mind hanging out in the library while I-"

He snorted, "Fuck that"

She expected that reaction, "Alright…"

He accompanied her to her locker, where much to her dismay, Lori and Rick, as well as two others of their friends were gathered. It was one of the pitfalls of having their lockers so close together.

"Oh look, it's your best friend, Courtney", Daryl snickered, nudging her on her arm.

"Her name is not Courtney", Michonne side eyed him.

"It might as well be. Or Amber… any one of those names would fit her… she probably has a bunch of those stuffed toys on her bed and writes in her diary every damn night with some fur ball pen"

Michonne rolled her eyes at him as a light chuckle left her lips.

"Hey!", Lori greeted when she spotted Michonne, causing Daryl to release a low growl.

"Hey", She smiled back, briefly, not missing the way the others grew quiet. While she didn't look directly at Rick, she could easily feel his gaze on her as he leant on the locker behind his girlfriend.

"Hey… Daryl? It's Daryl, right?"

The teen gave Lori the quickest little nod.

Lori eyed him swiftly, before turning her attentions back to Michonne, "The game today-"

"No.", She issued, opening up her locker, "I told you, you have fun for the both of us"

"You don't even have to stay long!"

"I don't even have to go at all! It's not compulsory here!"

"You don't even have a good reason not to come-"

"Watching a group of guys tackle each other for a ball has no appeal to me", She responded dryly.

Lori narrowed her eyes at her, "You don't even have a reason to not come and watch me-"

"You're head cheerleader, so obviously you're very good at what you do, and knowing that is more than enough for me"

Lori stared at her, clearly unimpressed, "Really? _Really_ Michonne?"

"Really.", Michonne repeated with an innocent smile.

"We'll come.", Daryl volunteered, leading Michonne to whip her head around to look at him incredulously. The teen sniggered, "I'm sure we can find the time to stop by"

"Really?", Lori looked to Michonne with wide eyes.

"You can go if you want, Daryl", She almost bit out, giving her friend a warning glare.

"Nah. We should go together. I came here for you, after all", He shrugged.

"You can go home if you really want to-"

"Oh my god! Yes! You're coming!", Lori cheered, throwing her arms around Michonne.

Michonne almost recoiled from the action, "I didn't say I was-"

Lori ignored her, "Get there early so you have great seats".

"We'll be right on time", Daryl grinned evilly.

"Great! I'll see you later!", Lori backed away, prompting Rick and the others to follow her.

Michonne turned and punched Daryl in the arm, "What is wrong with you?!"

The teen chuckled, "I don't even wanna' go. I just said that to piss off those assholes behind her"

She squinted at him, "Who cares about them?"

"Not me, but I saw a reason to tick them off and I took it"

"She's going to expect me to go now-"

"We'll stop by for a little while… don't worry, I'll find a way to make it appealing to you"

"The only way that game would ever be appealing to me, is if they replaced the ball with a Bengal tiger and the objective of the game was to survive. That would be impressive"

Daryl stared off into the distance as he thought about it, then snickered, "Imagine that"

They went their separate ways, and Michonne couldn't help but wonder what the other teen would get up to throughout the day. He didn't even bother to turn up with anything besides his keys, and she was sure he didn't have the faintest idea of what classes he had, or when.

After enduring most of her classes, she made her way to the library to meet with Rick and Glenn. She had mentally prepared herself for an hour of interacting with Rick, but when she got there, she was surprised to learn that that wouldn't be the case.

"Glenn's at the hospital", Rick informed her when she approached him at the library doors, "He had a little accident"

She crossed her arms over her chest as she gave him a questioning look.

"He slipped and broke his wrist in biology…"

Her eyes widened a fraction.

"...He tripped over the stool… landed bad", Rick cringed, "So he won't be joining us… and neither will I. I have some thangs I need to take care of"

She exhaled through her nose, reaching for the door handle anyway.

He put his hand out to stop her, almost touching her stomach, "We can still meet up. Later? That way we can get somethan' started at least"

She took a small step back, mulling over the other option. At least with Glenn in their group, she had some sort of buffer between her and Rick, but with the third member of their group in the emergency room, she would have to work with him directly. He raised an eyebrow at her as he waited for an answer, and she nearly growled an, "Okay".

He nodded, his gaze dropping, then crawling back up her, "Library at four?"

"That's fine"

"Alright. See you then".

He moved his hand, and allowed her to enter the room, so she stepped past him with her gaze low, and only inhaled when she was out of view to him. She wished she didn't find him so attractive. She wished she didn't fantasise about brushing her fingers along his strong jaw line, or wonder how it felt to feel his soft, pink lips against hers. But she did, and the more time she spent around him, the harder it became for her to block out such visuals.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter two:

"Rick? Is that you, son?"

Rick dropped his bag down at the bottom of the staircase as he walked deeper into his home, "Yeah, Grandma"

"You're home early, no practise today?", The elderly woman quizzed, washing a rolling pin at sink.

"Nah, I got a game later…", He hopped up on the counter as he watched her, "You feeling alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine son, I made a pie, for after dinner. It's cherry, your favourite, right?"

"Great", He smiled, although he hated cherry pie.

"Your grandfather should be home soon. He went to go his truck looked at"

"Oh, yeah?"

"Yeah. He said he was having trouble with the brakes or somethan'... I don't know, he's always breaking somethan' anyway"

Rick snickered at her, "Yeah"

"How's Lauren doing?"

"Lori", He corrected gently, "She's fine, grandma"

"Oh, Lori. That's it. Lovely girl, you should bring her around again sometime. It was lovely having her over for dinner the other day…"

It had been much longer since Lori came over to their home, but he didn't want to confuse the older woman further, "Yeah… it was"

"What time will you get home from practise?", She questioned, drying her hands on her apron.

"I'll probably be home late from the game, so don't wait up for me"

"Oh yes, sorry, the game. Alright then, I'll leave a plate for you in the fridge"

"That's fine"

She tilted her head at him as she smiled, warmth radiating from her eyes, "Just look how you've grown. I feel like it was just yesterday that I was out in that yard trying to get you down from that darn tree… and now look at you"

Rick grinned back at her, "Think I'm almost as tall at some that tree now"

She chuckled at him, "You _wish!"_

The moment Rick and his grandfather realised that his grandmother's memory wasn't what it used to be, they decided it would be better that she wasn't left on her own for long periods of time. While it was usually small things she forgot, such as names and places, there would be periods where she would forget information just recited to her, which worried both males.

His grandfather returned home later in the afternoon, huffing and puffing about his truck as he strolled into the living room, "The mechanic told me I'd have to wait two weeks to get it back because he has a backlog-"

"Two weeks? Just to check out the breaks?", His grandmother quizzed with a frown, "That's too long-"

"That's what I said. I saw Stan and he told me to take it over to the trailer park, get one of them boys to check it out", the older man sat back in his recliner, "We went over there, dropped it off and the boy told me to come back tomorrow for it"

"Oh really? That's not too bad then. Stan drop you home?"

"Yeah. I might need you to take me back up there to get it, Rick"

The teen stretched as he stood up from the couch, "Yeah? Alright, I can do that"

"Thanks."

He left his home shortly after his grandfather's arrival, and drove to the library in town to meet Michonne. He would have preferred that Glenn was present, but sadly that wasn't the case.

To say Michonne confused him would be an understatement. He initially thought that maybe it was a misunderstanding, and she could have been nervous around new people, but he soon noticed that he was the only person receiving such a frosty reception from her. It made him uncomfortable, because she was so visibly uncomfortable with his presence, and he would rack his brain trying to figure out why.

When he first saw her he was intrigued. He hadn't come across many people like her, and everything about her stood out from the crowd, from her locked hair, and dark skin, to her black biker boots, which seemed to be her favourite pair. There was an air of mystery about her, but due to his relationship status, he had to reel his curiosity in, especially when she and Lori became good friends. That was another thing that confused him, as the two were completely opposites, personality wise, but Rick didn't question it.

He reached the library a little later than they had planned, but still managed to find Michonne fairly easily as she sat on a wall at the front of the building with her nose in a book, "Sorry I'm late… I got caught up waiting for somebody"

She glanced up at him, before putting the book at way in her backpack. She didn't say anything at all as she stood up and walked towards the large, wooden doors. Rick followed her, hoping that by the end of their session, she wouldn't feel it necessary to be so cold towards him.

They took a seat towards the very back of the building by the computers, and quickly got to work on their assignment. She only spoke when he asked her a question that required more than just a nod, or shake of her head. He wondered if hardly speaking was her way of getting along with him, which he secretly found comical.

"So which part do you wanna' take the lead on?", Rick queried, sitting back in his seat.

Michonne peaked at him from the corner of her eye as she scribbled down her notes in her book, "The first half."

He raised his eyebrows, "The first half? So you do half and me and Glenn split the other half?"

"Yep."

He frowned at her, "Mrs Peletier probably won't like that"

She smirked, "Yeah well, she knows how I work"

"That's not how I work though. I think it should be equal", He countered, watching her closely for her reply.

She looked directly at him, "You have an opportunity to get a good grade for doing a slither of the work. Take it"

"I don't want that", He shook his head, "It's not fair"

"Do you want more work to do?"

"I can handle it. We split it into thirds and that's it. You pick what you want to talk about and we go from there", He was sure he heard her groan before turning her attentions back to her book, which only fuelled Rick's frustrations, "Is that somethan' else you have a problem with? Working fairly?"

Her head whipped back up, "No. I do not have a problem with working fairly"

"Seems like you do? And it seems like you have a problem with Mrs Peletier, too? Anythan' else?"

"Yeah, actually, I have a problem with smart asses, too", She snapped back.

A disbelieving chuckle left him, "I'm a smart ass for challenging that ridiculous attitude of yours?"

"Ridiculous attitude?"

"Yes, your ridiculous attitude. I'm guessing you have a problem with Mrs Peletier because she's making you work in a group, and you probably now have an even bigger problem with me for not letting you do half the work-"

"I didn't even say anything", She hissed as she squinted at him.

"You didn't need to. You don't need to say anythan' at all because everythan' about you tells me how you feel, your face, your body language- just all of it"

She frowned at him, "Well then don't look at me"

"Well that's not an option for me", As soon the words left Rick's mouth, he realised how the admission could have been misinterpreted. He didn't miss how her expression softened, but it was such a subtle difference that he could have missed it if he blinked. He quickly straightened up, "Look, we need to get this done, so I'd appreciate it if we can just meet each other halfway here. We all do our equal share"

"Fine", She turned away from him and continued on with her work.

Neither of them said anything for the remainder of their session, and when it was time for them to leave they both mustered a quite 'bye' to each other.

Rick felt guilty, and it was such a strange occurrence for him, as he hadn't done anything to feel such a way. He pondered if he spoke too harshly to her, or if he should have offered her a ride home, or if she was the reason he felt some guilt in the first place.

He forced himself to focus on the upcoming game, as the last thing he needed was to be distracted on the football field. That was the one place he felt free to let out all his frustrations, while still playing fair of course.

"You ready, man?", Shane asked in the locker room as the boys changed into their uniform.

"Yeah", Rick sighed, bringing his foot up on the bench to tie his laces, "You?"

"You know it"

Shane was his closest friend, and his only confidant. They had grown up together, and the two of them knew of each other's struggles. However he did wish his friend had a more level headed approach to obstacles. While Rick found satisfaction in releasing his tensions on the field, Shane found satisfaction in releasing his tensions just about anywhere. It concerned Rick, as he wanted his friend to do well, and with his attitude, it wouldn't be easy for him.

Once out on the field, Rick quickly spotted Lori performing with her team. She took so much pride from being a cheerleader, and Rick admired that about her. She would routinely blow him a kiss before the game, and cheer him on excitedly from the side lines, which was always encouraging.

Despite going through his usual rituals before a game, he found himself feeling uncharacteristically nervous when he happened to catch sight of Michonne in the stands. She was with Daryl, sat on the end of the bleachers, watching Lori and her friends. Even though his girlfriend had always urged her to come along to the games, she never turned up, and he never expected her too.

His performance was nowhere near as good as it usually was, and he seemed to be making stupid mistakes that cost his team points. Instead of ridding himself of any stress he felt, he was gathering new ones. It angered him, and by the end of the third quarter he was furious with himself.

"Grimes!", Coach ford yelled, throwing his clipboard on the floor, "Where the hell is your head at, boy?!"

Rick growled to himself, "Sorry, coach-"

"Sorry? Sorry?! I don't want a damn 'Sorry', I want you to get your shit together and play!"

Rick nodded, resting his hands at the back of his helmet as he breathed, "Got it"

He strolled back onto the field, forcing himself to focus, but curiosity got the better of him, and he glanced up to the stands. Michonne was still there surprisingly, and she was watching Daryl as he spoke, a smile slowly growing on her face. Rick regretted looking at her almost immediately.

The last quarter of the game was no better than the rest, and Rick questioned why he even bothered playing. He prepared himself for an ear lashing from his coach mid-way through, as he knew that was what he was in for. He could see that even his team members were shocked and annoyed, but unlike Shane, none of the others would say anything to him. It was as if they were scared to, which only wound Rick up even more.

When the game finished, Rick ripped his helmet off and hurtled it as far away as possible, muttering to himself, "Fucking idiot!"

"Hey, hey! Aye man! What the hell was that?!", Shane quizzed, pulling his own helmet off, "We're you playing bad on purpose?!"

"You'd think that, right? You'd fucking think I was", Rick cursed, pacing back and forth as the other players left the field.

"What's going on with you?", Shane watched him with an incredulous look, "You on somethan'?"

"No, man. My heads just…", Rick raked his fingers through his hair, "I don't know. I don't know what's wrong, I'm just off, that's all"

"You were more than just off. You were fucking dead out there"

"I know"

"Hey! You okay?", Lori quizzed as she sprinted up to him, "What happened?"

"Nothing", Rick sighed, slowing down, "Just a bad game"

Her brown eyes searched his face, "...You should probably go get changed"

"Yeah. Let coach have it out on you, before he takes it out on the rest of us", Shane quipped, tipping his head back towards the locker rooms.

"Alright, go on, I'm coming"

Rick retrieved his helmet, and sulked all the way back to the building, where coach Ford yelled until he was red in the face. Rick actually didn't mind, he felt he deserved it after all.

That night he laid in his bed, staring up at the ceiling for an unusual amount of time, barely able to sleep. He felt as if his brain wouldn't switch off, too busy combing over every detail of his evening. He decided to write it off as a bad day, and he had the weekend to recover from it all.

He was awoken that Saturday to the sound of knocking on his bedroom door, and his grandfather's voice, "Rick! Up you get!"

He groaned and rolled over onto his stomach.

"Aye! Up you get, boy!"

Rick wished his grandparents would start the day later. They often woke up early every day, without fail, and he couldn't think of anything worse on the weekend.

He was washed, dressed and already tried again by noon, as his grandfather had him help with house and yard work. The older man was a hard worker, and even though he was retired, he still had to keep himself busy. Rick was fortunate that his family were doing well because of the family's dairy production business, which meant that his grandparents were able to raise him comfortably, but he dreaded the thought of having to take it over one day.

"Your game didn't go to well, I take it?", The older man asked as Rick drove him over to the trailer park to retrieve his car, "You've had a face as long as a horses all day"

Rick flinched, "Yeah. Could have gone better"

"Yeah. They can't all be good, you get some bad ones too. Don't let it get you down so much"

"Yeah… I'm trying"

"Your father used to play football in high school"

Rick raised an eyebrow at the man, "I know. Grandma told me"

"He was good too. Probably who you got it from. His side of the family were into all of that"

Rick hated the topic of his parents, so he swiftly changed to the conversation, "You think grandma will be alright while we're gone?"

"Yeah… she's planting her roses so… that should keep her busy until I get back"

"Alright"

They arrived at the trailer park, which wasn't too bad to Rick's surprise. It was always mentioned as the 'bad part' of town, and Rick had never had a reason to venture onto the little site. Children were playing while some adults sat outside, and most of the mobile homes were small, but looked after. He pulled up beside his grandfather's truck, and they both exited Rick's vehicle.

"She looks clean too", The old man remarked, taking in the shiny green coat.

"Yeah", Rick agreed, leaning against his car, "She does"

A trailer door swung open, and while Rick wasn't surprised to see Daryl step out, as it was well known that he lived there, he was surprised to see Michonne following him out.

"Mr Grimes", Daryl greeted the older man, then sent Rick a single nod, "Rick"

Rick mimicked his action.

"She looks great, but how's she working?", His grandfather walked around the truck to speak to the young mechanic.

Michonne stood watching the exchange, dressed in a light blue, denim dungaree dress that skimmed her thighs, with a white tank top underneath. She wore her locks up in a messy bun, exposing all of her face and neck. Rick stole a peek at her whenever she wasn't looking, trying to figure out what was actually going on between she and Daryl.

"Rick! I'm just gonna' take a look at his bike, I'll be back in a second", His grandfather announced, already following the teenager towards the back of the nearest trailer.

Rick could have groaned, but instead he just called back, "Alright"

A blue and white ball rolled by his feet, and soon a little boy appeared, stopping only a foot away from Rick. He looked at the teen, and then at his ball, then back up at Rick again, "Kick it then!"

Rick raised his eyebrows at the boy, "Is that how you ask for thangs?"

"Around here we do", He countered, crossing his arms over his chest.

Rick stared at him for a second, "Oh, alright then"

He straightened up, taking a small step back before kicking the ball with just enough momentum to send it flying in the air, all the way to the other side of the trailers. The little boy looked to where the ball landed, then back at Rick with shock.

"Go _get_ it then!", Rick issued, cocking his head at the boy.

He huffed, turning and running to fetch his ball.

"Nice", Michonne commented, standing closer to his grandfather's truck.

Rick looked at her with a raised brow, "Just doing it how they do thangs around here"

She shielded her eyes from the sun as she looked at him, "We don't do things like that around here. He's just a little punk"

He frowned when he realised she used the term 'we', "You live here?"

"Yes."

"With Daryl?", The question left his mouth before he could even think to consider it.

"No.", She shook her head.

He slowly nodded, leaning back against his car, "Right".

The trailer door closest to them opened and a dark skinned man appeared, dressed in a t-shirt and shorts, holding a six pack of beer in his hands, "What's going on?"

"Nothing. Daryl's just doing business", Michonne answered.

"Oh yeah? Good for him", The man looked to Rick, pointing at his grandfather's car, "Yours?"

Rick shook his head, "Nah, my grandfathers"

"Well, it's a really nice truck"

"Where are you going, dad?", Michonne quizzed, turning to him slightly.

"Just going to hang out with John and his son"

"You have work soon"

"I know. I'll make it on time, don't worry", the man chuckled, resting his hand on her shoulder, "Sometimes I forget who's the parent here"

Rick didn't miss the way she turned out of his hold, wearing a small, tight smile, "Yeah, well don't stay out too long"

"I won't", Her father gave Rick a quick nod before starting off on his journey.

Rick watched him for only a moment, then looked back to Michonne, who was staring after her father. He cleared his throat, trying to clear the air from the awkward moment, "How's your part of the presentation coming along?"

She tore her gaze away from her father's back, "Fine."

"If Glenn's in on Monday then I'm sure we can sort somethan' out in class… pick another day"

"Fine by me", She turned her head to the sound of voices, as Daryl and his Grandfather resurfaced, and she began walking back to the trailer she emerged from, but not without stopping to call over her shoulder, "Sorry about your game"

Rick huffed, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand, "Thanks"

She continued on, opening the door and disappearing inside. Rick had to look away from the mobile home, when his grandfather approached him, not sure how her small gesture could make him feel substantially better.

His grandfather left in his own truck after thanking Daryl, and Rick bid them both farewell, making his way back in to town. His weekends were usually spent hanging out with his friends in Shane's basement, but before he could go there, he stopped by at Lori's home first.

To Rick's displeasure, her mother opened the door, "Oh hello, Rick! Come on in!"

"Mrs Adams", Rick smiled politely, trying to keep a friendly distance between the two, but the woman still caught him by the shoulders and kissed him closer to the lips, than his cheeks. He wished she would just settle for a handshake instead.

"Lori! Rick's here!", The woman called up the stairs, still holding Rick in a death grip, "How handsome you look today! And I'm so sorry about the game, I know you tried your hardest"

"Thank you", Rick wondered when she would release him, "Uh, is Mr Adams in today?"

"Oh no, he's gone off fishing with his old buddies", The woman's black curls bounced as she spoke.

"Oh okay… should I just go up to-"

"Yes, sure go on, she's just fussing with her hair anyway"

Lori's mother finally released him, and Rick all but ran up the stairs to his girlfriend's bedroom. He knocked once before stepping inside, were Lori was sat curling her hair by her vanity mirror. She gave him a large smile, "Hey!"

"Hey, what's going on?", He sighed, taking a seat on her bed.

"Nothing. You heading over to Shane's?"

"Yeah, you wanna' come along?"

"Nah, I'm meant to be meeting up with Andrea to go shopping"

He yawned, "Alright…"

"Busy morning?"

"My grandpa had me running all over the house with him, then we had to go get his car from the trailer park on the edge of town"

"Ew", She cringed, her lip curling in disgust, "You went over there?"

Rick frowned at her reaction, "Yeah?"

"That's where all the drunks live"

Two things occurred to him in that moment, the first being that that could have been a possibility with Michonne's father, especially as she voiced her concerns about where he was going, and the second thing, was that he really didn't like the way his girlfriend spoke at all. , "...Have you ever been there?"

"God, no", She scoffed whilst standing up.

A third thing occurred to him, that his girlfriend had no idea that Michonne lived there, "How'd you know what's it's like if you've never been?"

Lori shrugged as she stood at her closet, "People talk, obviously"

"Well I've been and I'm telling you it's not a bad place. Daryl lives there"

"Yeah, and he's a delinquent", She scoffed again, looking at him disbelievingly.

"...Didn't you wanna' set him up with Michonne?"

"Oh!", Lori jumped up excitedly, "No, I didn't. I was actually just double checking that she definitely didn't like him like that, because I was actually thinking about setting her up with Shane"

Rick's eyebrows sprung up, "What?"

"Obviously after I give her a makeover, but I think they would suit. He's loud and aggressive and she doesn't take crap so… she could kind of tame him, right?"

Rick tried to picture it, but struggled, "I think if they like each other then they need to find that out on their own, and let them handle it the way they want to-"

"No way! Shane's not going to notice her because she's always wearing baggy jeans and those weird t-shirts... and Michonne's never had a boyfriend before, she says she doesn't even care about guys, but I think it's because Daryl's always around"

"They're friends. So what?"

"He's always hogging up her time. I need to get him out the way, get rid of those stupid jeans and boots, then I can set her up with Shane. You'll see, it will work"

Rick was so uncomfortable with the conversation that he started to fidget, rubbing his thumb and index finger together feverishly.

The thought of Michonne and Shane together didn't sit right with Rick at all. His best friend liked girls who chased him, hanging on his every word and looked at him like he was some sort of Adonis from what Rick knew, Michonne was not that type at all. Learning that she had never had a boyfriend before also left Rick quite shocked, though hearing that she didn't care for boys, didn't.

After dropping his girlfriend in town, Rick made his way over to Shane's home with a clouded mind. It was draining him.

"Rick! Hi, Rick!", Shane's little sister welcomed him at the door, bouncing happily on the spot.

"Hey Sarah, you alright?", He beamed down to her.

"Yep! Shane's downstairs with Tyrese. They're playing a card game"

"Well thank you for letting me know that. Is your mom home?", Rick stepped in and closed the door.

"Nope, she's at work"

"Oh hey, Rick", Shane's other sister smiled, skipping down the stairs with a smile.

"Hey Shelly", Rick reeled his smile back just a little when he saw the fifteen year old.

"Shane's in the basement… do you want a drink or somethan'?", The girl flicked her hair as she pointed towards the kitchen.

"Nah, I'm alright, thanks. I'm gonna' head downstairs", Rick headed towards staircase that led to the basement.

"Okay!"

Shane's younger sister had made it obvious what she thought of Rick, and he wondered if the girl followed after her brother, as he was also a big fan of openly flirtatious behaviour.

Shane's basement was nothing short of perfection, for a teenager. His mother allowed him to have the bottom floor of the house, as the teen had complained about his sisters and their friends 'hogging' the living area. Rick was only a little jealous of his spoilt friend.

Both boys were sat on the couch facing the big screen TV when Rick walked in, engrossed in a football game, "What's going on?"

Shane glanced at him, "You made it, pull up somewhere"

"You need to see this", Tyrese added, not looking away from the screen as he spoke to Rick.

He threw himself down in the wide, comfortable chair and watched as one of the players scored a touchdown, "Nice."

"You need to take this seriously, I don't want you messing up again", Shane insisted, tipping his head towards the TV.

"Yeah man, what happened to you?", Tyrese finally looked at Rick.

"Friday just wasn't my day", Rick huffed, dragging his hands over his face, "Somethan' threw me off"

"We'll get 'em next time"

"Ya' damn right we will", Shane agreed, grabbing his can of soda off the coffee table, "Aye, you hear what happened after the game when we left the field? Well, while you were getting your balls busted by coach, someone set off all the car alarms in the parking lot, so they all went off at the same damn time"

"What?", Rick frowned.

"Yeah! Like fifty cars all going off at once, I'm still hear ringing in my ears", Tyrese shook his head as he wore an annoyed expression.

"Shit… I missed it.", Rick thought of a possible suspect, but kept his suspicions to himself.

He spent the rest of the weekend relaxing when he could, and working on his presentation occasionally. The only reason he fretted about his school work, was because he wanted to be able to play football undisrupted. He knew how bad grades could affect his position on the team, and that was the last thing he wanted.

When Monday came around, he rolled out of bed determined to have a good day. He took a shower and dressed in his usual black and white varsity jacket, with a white t-shirt underneath and light blue jeans. He ate breakfast with his grandparents, then set off for school in a good mood, picking up Lori along the way.

He still felt uneasy around his girlfriend after their last conversation. Not only because of her remarks about the trailer park, but also because of her plan to interfere, and subsequently manipulate Michonne, so that she could play cupid. Lori had always been marginally bossy, and to some extent, controlling, but usually in regards to her own life, such as with fellow cheerleaders and their rehearsals. Rick didn't like to think she would use the same tactics on her own friend to get her to do what she wanted.

"We need to sit down at lunch today and go over plans for my birthday party", The Brunette announced, her eyes glued to her phone screen.

Rick peered at her from the corner of his eye, as they made their way over to her locker, "I might have to work on my presentation at lunch"

"Oh, yeah. I forgot", She sighed, finally looking up at him, "Well, how about after school?"

"Practise, but I could stop by your house later, if I'm not too tired", Rick began to nibble on his lip when he noticed Michonne already at her own locker.

"Yeah, that might work- Oh, hey Michonne!", Lori smiled, pulling her backpack off her shoulder.

The other girl looked at them both, "Hey, what's happening?"

"My birthday party, I need to find an outfit", Lori informed, opening her locker door.

"Oh yeah, Saturday, right?"

"That's right"

"Got it", Michonne nodded.

Lori gave Rick a discreet look, and he knew his girlfriend well enough to know that he wasn't going to like where the conversation was going, "Hey… what are you going to wear?"

Michonne frowned at her, "I don't have any idea-"

"So let's go shopping one day after school! We can find a cute dress to wear or something…"

"I definitely won't be wearing a 'cute dress'-"

"Why not? You have a killer body underneath all of that!", Lori tugged at Michonne's t-shirt while Rick dropped his head back against the locker in exasperation, "Would it _kill_ you to wear a nice dress or skirt for one night? A few hours? Please?"

"I'll think about it", Michonne rolled her eyes as she closed her locker, "Now I've got to go, I'll talk to you later"

"Alright"

Michonne gave Rick a very small, very brief, smile as she stepped past them, stalking down the hall. Rick watched after her for a few seconds, before turning back to Lori, who was grinning to herself.

"Step one, makeover"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three:

"I feel like you're part is _way_ longer than mine…"

Michonne's eyes rolled up from the sheet of paper in front of her to meet Glenn's, "Only by a couple hundred words"

Glenn stared at her, "That's a lot you know"

"Then just add a few more points to yours. I can't trim this down because a lot of it is important information and key to the whole topic"

Glenn continued to stare at her, "Can you help me then? Because I literally don't know what else to say"

She huffed, holding out her hand for his notes, "Fine"

"Thank you", Glenn smiled, willingly handing the sheet over.

"Sorry I'm late. I had to meet with coach and he… he had a lot to say", Rick huffed, taking a seat at the table in the empty classroom.

"It's okay. We were just going over what we had written so far", Glenn informed, "Michonne's helping me make my speech longer because hers is at least ten minutes long"

Michonne kept her eyes glued to the work in front of her, though the temptation to look up was rife.

"Can I read it through?"

She still didn't take her eyes off the paper as she slid her book over to Rick.

He scoffed, "...Three whole pages?"

"It's all key information", She replied.

There was a moment of silence as they both read to themselves, all while Glenn sat watching them, his eyes darting back and forth.

"You don't stick to your point of the presentation", Rick announced, leaning over as he held up her notepad, forcing Michonne to look up, "That whole section about funding should come under Glenn's points"

She shook her head, "It's relevant to everything else that I have"

"But it would fit better with him. You still have a lot of information, and if everyone's listening then they should know it all ties together"

She could barely focus on what he was saying, instead her mind wondered what kind of cologne he wore. She shook her head, turning back to Glenn's work, "Fine. Whatever"

"Hey! There you are! I left my gym shoes in your locker!", A brunette girl in a cheerleading uniform called from the door.

"Oh shoot. I forgot", Glenn began to stand, "Uh, be right back guys"

"Alright", Rick muttered still reading Michonne's book.

"But hurry up", Michonne added, for good measure.

The youngest teen sprinted out the room, leaving Rick and Michonne to read in silence. She was trying her best to be pleasant, or at least civil, while they worked together, but she struggled as her feelings grew for him.

"Have the two of you come up with another time to meet?"

She shook her head, "Not yet."

"I might not be able to do right after school… and coach wants me to train a little harder this week and I know Glenn has work…"

She gave a little shrug, "We'll figure something out"

He shifted in his seat, "If I can't make it then how about we meet up in the evening? If you can?"

Michonne found herself rereading the same sentence several times as he spoke, "Fine"

Silence ensued again, and as time passed, Michonne began to question if Glenn's locker was in a different town.

"...Your part is still pretty long…", He held out her notebook to her, "I'm all for getting a good grade, but you've covered a whole lot of stuff that's kind of… unnecessary"

Her eyes darted up to meet his, "Unnecessary? None of it is unnecessary"

"Yeah", He nodded, "You'll just be putting everyone to sleep with that"

"Let them sleep. I don't care about anything else, as long Mrs Peletier gives it the grade it deserves", She intended to snatch the book away from him, but he still held onto it.

"I didn't mean for that to sound rude, I just meant that you could trim it down and keep it interesting", He insisted, staring her dead in the eyes as he spoke.

"I like it the way it is", She countered, tugging the book from his grip, "I think you've given enough input for today"

He tilted his head at her, "You really don't take criticism well, do you?"

"I take constructive criticism just fine"

"Well obviously, you don't, because that ridiculous attitude of yours is making an appearance again, just because I suggested that you stick to the point, your point to be exact, and stop going off topic-"

"What you may consider as going off topic is what I consider as educating people, which is the whole point of the presentation. By sticking to only what you've been asked to do, your showing everyone a slither of the bigger picture, but if you include related topics, then you're giving people the opportunity to learn more", She narrowed her eyes at him, "That has always been my work ethic and strangely enough, I've gotten nothing less than an A from applying myself that way, and I'm not about to change that"

He stared at her the whole time she spoke, barely blinking, "As I said, you _really_ don't take criticism well"

She rolled her eyes away from his, "Says the smart ass, know-it-all jock that's known me for all of two minutes"

His mouth fell agape from shock, "Smart ass, know-it-all jock? Is that what I am?"

"If the helmet fits", She smirked, a little proud of herself for the remark.

Michonne didn't know what she expected him to say, but she did know that she didn't expect to hear a light chuckle, "I'll let you have that one"

She snuck a peek at him as he smiled, and it made her stomach flutter to know she was the cause of it, but it was a short lived moment.

Michonne had to keep reminding herself that he was Lori's boyfriend. Lori was the only person at her that actually made any attempt to make her feel welcome, and she was her only friend at school, so the last thing she wanted to do was repay her by getting cosy with Rick.

But her resolve was slowly falling apart.

Rick cleared his throat after a third bout of silence, "Maybe we could-"

"Oh my god, you guys just missed it", Glenn announced as he hurried back in the room, "There was a fight outside the lunch hall-"

"Between who?"

"That other football player…the angry one…"

"Shane?"

"Yeah! That's the one and, that other kid… he's not here often… Uh… he drives the motor cycle-"

"Daryl?", Michonne squinted at Glenn.

"Yeah! I think that's his name"

She groaned as she began to pack her work away, muttering under her breath, "Just great"

"Where are you going?", Rick quizzed, watching with a raised brow.

"I have to go, we can meet here again tomorrow if you're both free"

"Uh… that works for me", Glenn nodded.

"...Fine", Rick agreed, his expression still a sceptical one.

"Great. Bye", She huffed, sliding her backpack on her shoulder as she stood up.

It was really only a matter of time before Daryl got into a confrontation with another student, as it was another thing he was notorious for, other than never being present. The teen had the tendency to exercise little to no patience with others, and judging by the fact that Rick's friend Shane was referred to as the 'angry one', Daryl had obviously met his match.

She headed to the principal's office, assuming that was where they were sent for fighting, and she breathed a sigh of relief when she saw her friend sat outside the room, with a busted lip, his hair and clothes dishevelled.

Michonne stopped in front of him with her arms crossed. He looked up at her and grinned, exposing his blood stained teeth, "What's going on?"

She gave him a no-nonsense look.

"He started it", Daryl shrugged, "He wouldn't move out the way"

She rolled her eyes as she sat down next to him, "You'll probably be expelled for a few days. Not that that's much of a punishment for someone like you"

"I was done for the week anyway"

"It's only Monday", She squinted at him.

"I know", He snickered, causing her to do the same.

It was hopeless for her to wish he would apply himself to his studies, and even more pointless for her to reprimand him for his behaviour, so all she could do is stay by him.

"Where were you?"

She peered at him from the corner of her eyes, "Had to work on my presentation"

He snorted, "You still working on that?"

Her face pinched in confusion, "I only got it last Friday?"

The door to the office opened, and a moody Shane appeared, sporting a slightly swollen eye that was in the early stages of bruising. He snarled down at Daryl, "This ain't over"

"You bet it ain't", Daryl countered, mimicking Shane's expression.

"Dixon! In here, now!", The principal yelled.

The two teens measured each other with their eyes as one walked away and the other stepped into the office. Michonne could only shake her head, hoping that by the end of the school day they would have calmed enough to move on.

She attended her afternoon classes as usual, and when the day was over, she had expected to see Daryl sat on his bike by the curb, waiting for her, but instead she was greeted by a crowd of students, hovering by the entrance.

The atmosphere was charged, and it's only when she heard someone mention a fight that she knew why they were all gathered around. She searched for Daryl, hoping to talk some sense into him, but instead she found herself in front of Lori.

"So there's going to be a fight-"

"I know. Have you seen Daryl?", She didn't mean to cut the girl off, but she was trying to avoid all chances of a fight happening at all.

"Nope. Still waiting for him", Lori shrugged, looking out over the crowd.

Michonne huffed, "I'm going to look for him"

"...Okay"

She was amazed to learn how many people would stick around to see a fist fight, and she snaked her way through the crowds several times before heading to the parking lot. If his motorcycle wasn't there, then he would have gone home already, and she would have nothing to worry about.

Sadly, his motorcycle was still there, and so was her friend, and to her surprise, Rick. The football player was speaking to Daryl, and it appeared that Daryl was listening, until he caught sight of Michonne.

She sighed as she approached them, "What's going on? Everybody thinks there's going to be a fight?"

"There is", Daryl revealed, "He said this ain't over so I'm waiting on him"

Rick took a small step back as he rubbed the back of his neck, "I was just asking Daryl if he could maybe… not do that"

"Isn't Shane your friend? Can't you talk to him?", She quizzed, crossing her arms over her chest.

"He's all riled up. There's no point talking to him today, but if they don't get into again then he'd probably forget about it by tomorrow"

She looked to Daryl, "Can we just go home, please?"

The other teen shook his head, "I ain't ah punk. If he wants a fight then he'll get one"

"Is really worth it? Shane, of all people? Some knuckle head jock who gets excited about catching a ball like a dog?", She glanced at Rick, "No offence"

Daryl sniggered, while Rick pursed his lips, "None taken"

"I hate to say this, but you've fought some pretty rough guys in your time that were twice your age and your size… so why waste your time on Shane? He's a _chimp_ "

Daryl chuckled as he shook his head, "There you go again with that mouth of yours"

"Just forget about him, please?"

Her friend looked like he was actually considering her plea. He looked from her to Rick, obviously weighing up their arguments, and he finally snorted, "Whatever-"

"Hey asshole! You hiding out here?!", Shane boomed, marching over to him with a crowd not far behind.

Daryl slowly stood up, "Never mind"

"Oh great", Rick muttered, eyeing Shane from where he stood.

Michonne looked from Shane to Daryl, "It's not too late to walk away"

"You bet it is", Daryl pulled off his leather jacket and slung it over the seat of his bike.

"You ready?", Shane quizzed, glaring at Daryl as he approached him, "You piece of trailer trash"

"I'm here, ain't I? Prick!", Daryl spat back, looking Shane from head to toe.

"I thought you'd gone off looking for your daddy", Shane taunted, "Checking in dumpsters for that drunk son of a bitch-"

Shane's sentence was cut short by Daryl's fist. The punch was solid, and hard enough to send Shane stumbling backwards. The students around them all started to chant excitedly, and Michonne was forced to stand back when the two teens came to blows. They were evenly matched, both able to land brutal hits on each other and it was too difficult for Michonne to watch.

"Hey! Hey!", Mrs Peletier appeared, pushing her way through the crowd, "Knock it off! Now!"

Neither teen listened, so the woman dived between them with both hands raised to stop them, "I said knock it off! Now! Get inside right this minute!"

Daryl wiped his hand with the back of his mouth, "Nah, I'm done with this place"

"All of you had better leave or else I am giving everyone from every grade detention!".

The crowd quickly dispersed, with students darting in every direction to leave the scene.

Michonne hissed to Daryl, "Just go. You're already in a lot of trouble so just get it over with"

He shook his head, "Fuck that-"

"Go!", She breathed through gritted teeth, visibly annoyed.

He spat blood to the concrete floor, giving her a brief glare.

"Principal's office. Go!", Mrs Peletier repeated to Daryl, as Shane had already started making his way there.

The other teen reluctantly followed, escorted by the only teacher present. Michonne watched them leave, releasing a long suffering sigh as she sat on her troubled friends bike.

"You're not waiting for him are you?", Lori appeared at her side, wearing a small frown.

Michonne glanced at the thin black watch she wore on her wrist, "Depends how long it takes. I need to go home and check on my dad"

"Rick will drop you home"

She shook her head, "No. It's okay-"

Lori looked at her strangely, "Yeah, why not? Come on, you said yourself you need to check on your dad"

"I'm sure Rick doesn't want to have to-"

"He doesn't mind. He's nice like that"

Michonne hated how easy it was for Lori to refute her refusals. She didn't want to ride in a car with the two of them, but she also had to make sure that her father had made it into work that day, especially after spending most of the weekend drinking. She cringed, accepting defeat, "Fine. But ask him first-"

"Rick! You need to drop Michonne home!", The Brunette called to her boyfriend, who was leaning on his car, speaking to another athlete.

His eyes darted to Michonne for only a second, "Alright!"

"Go on. He'll take you"

Michonne squinted at her friend, "Where are you going? Aren't you coming?"

Lori pointed at her uniform, "Cheerleading practice. Go on, he'll take you"

Michonne decided that she had spent too much time around Rick that day. Before their assignment, she would only ever see him when he hung around Lori at her locker, or on the other side of the room when they had a class together, and whenever he had football practise while she ate her lunch. That day, she had spent prolonged amounts of time with him, and it left her feeling a combination of feelings.

They rode in silence for most of the journey. An awkward silence. Michonne couldn't tell how Rick felt about driving her home as he just peered out the windshield as he drove, only looking in her direction when he was checking the road. She didn't want to say anything, as she was sure it would only make the atmosphere even more cringworthy.

"I hope you didn't take anythan' that Shane said seriously"

She almost jumped when Rick finally spoke, causing her to look at him with widened eyes, "What?"

"Shane. What he said back there. I hope you didn't take any offence to that. He was just… he just wanted to get a reaction from Daryl. He doesn't mean any of it… he just lashes out to get a reaction"

Shane's words replayed in her mind, and she gave a little shrug, "I don't really care. Daryl doesn't either, he probably just saw it as an opportunity to hit him first"

He glanced at her, "...Alright. Good"

When they arrived at the trailer park, Michonne expected him to park at the entrance and leave, but instead he drove through the site, and only stopped a short distance from her home. It wouldn't have been such a terrible idea if her father wasn't sat on the stoop, his head in his hands and a can of beer in front of him, which she was sure belonged to a six pack she had seen in the fridge earlier that day.

"Great", She muttered whilst opening the car door, "Thanks for the ride"

"...You need help?", Rick offered, not taking his eyes off the worse for wear man, "He doesn't look too good"

"I've got it"

She stalked over to her father, already so angry with him, "What is going on dad?"

The man looked up at her, and she could see he was indeed, very drunk. His eyes had trouble focusing on her, "He-hey baby! You enjoy s-school? You get… you get your grades right?"

She hooked her hand under his arm, "Come on, dad"

"I'm f-fine right here" He shook his head, pulling out of her hold, his eyes rolling shut, "You- you...you go in..."

The man slumped forward, falling to the floor. Michonne exhaled, running her hands over her face in exasperation before dropping her backpack to the floor. She grabbed hold of his arm again and tried to tug him up, but the man's dead weight was too much. She let go of his arm, feeling overwhelmed with fury as she growled, "Why do you always do this to me?! This isn't fair!"

In her midst of releasing her rage, she had forgotten that Rick was still there, and it was only when she saw a second set of hands grab hold of her father that she remembered he was playing witness. He pulled the man up with more ease than she, throwing his arm over his shoulder.

"You get his other side", He instructed, tipping his head in her father's direction.

She slowly inhaled, doing as she was told, taking her father's vacant arm. They both moved the unconscious man into the trailer and down the small hall to his bedroom. Rick seeing her home life that way was disheartening, as it was so personal to her, she regretted accepting Lori's offer. They laid her father down on his bed in the dark room, leaving him in the recovery position, just in case.

Michonne ran her hands over her face again as they stepped back into the kitchen and living area, "Thanks. You didn't need to do that"

"It's not a problem", Rick insisted, peering over his shoulder at her father's bedroom door, "Are you gonna' be alright?"

She frowned as she nodded, "Yeah. He's not violent or anything"

"...I didn't mean it like that", He clarified, shifting his stance.

Her gaze fell to the dark blue carpet beneath their shoes, "Fine."

He didn't seem to accept her answer, his eyes examining her closely, "...Have you talked to anybody about this? About getting him help?"

"No. I've got it from here so it's fine"

He shook his head, disagreeing softly, "No. It's not fine"

"Thank you for helping, Rick", She spoke a little firmer, feeling even more uncomfortable, "I appreciate that"

"What happens if he blacks out again and you can't get him up-"

"Then I will deal with it because it's _my_ business and nobody else's. That's what I'll do", She snapped, panic rising in her chest.

He inhaled, shaking his head once again, "I don't think this is somethan' you should be dealing with"

"I didn't ask what you think about my life, okay? I said thank you, so can you please just leave now?", She pointed towards the door, hoping he didn't notice her trembling hand.

He held his own hands up in surrender as he backed up towards the door, "Alright. Fine, I'm gone"

It was only when she heard his engine start in his car that she finally allowed herself to release an unsteady breath, her eyes welling up with tears. She ran her hands over her hair for a second time, looking around the trailer aimlessly as she tried to stop herself from crying, whispering to herself, "Stop it, Michonne. Just stop."

After such a horrible start to the week, she set out to avoid Rick, and she was quite successful at doing so. She would meet with Glenn in secret to exchange notes, feeding him a lie or two as to why she couldn't meet up to study, and she'd leave as soon as the bell rang at the end of any classes they shared.

It wasn't that she didn't agree with what he said about the situation with her father, but hearing it from someone, especially him, left her feeling vulnerable. She always did her best to have a thick skin no matter what, and she never liked to expose too much to others, and now Rick had seen her home life, she felt as if he had stepped into territory only known by Daryl.

"Is your dad back yet?", Michonne asked, looking up from the book on her lap to see Daryl.

The other teen shook his head, one of his eyes still bruised from his second altercation with Shane, "Nah. He's probably shacked up with some lady he met at the bar"

Her top lip curled in disgust, "Nice."

"He did it before with some single mom, but he left when she wanted him to watch her kid"

Michonne rolled her eyes, "Just keeps getting better. What are you going to do about bills and stuff?"

He shrugged, looking at one of the canvases beside her bed, "I don't even know what bills there are"

"...We'll see if your dad kept any record of them… we can probably call them up and explain you situation-"

"I don't want anyone knowing my business like that"

She sighed, turning her attentions back to her book, "Yeah. Me neither"

Daryl eyed her for a few moments, searching for the right words,"...I dropped out"

"Huh?", She frowned, looking back at him.

"I dropped out", He repeated, lifting his head as if he were preparing for her to reprimand him.

Her face smoothed as she realised what he said, "...On Monday?"

He nodded, biting his thumb nail, "Yeah. I'm gonna talk to Mickey about hiring me…"

She didn't know why his revelation saddened her, because she knew exactly how he felt about his education, but it still came to a shock as her to hear him finally say the words. Slowly nodding, she gave him a small, reassuring smile, "He probably will. You're good with cars"

"I hope so", He gruffed, still gnawing at his nails.

"...You still have to pick me up"

"I know", He peaked through the blinds when headlights shone into the room, signalling that someone was pulling up near to their homes.

She smirked, looking back down at her book for a second time, "We can go out to lunch or something"

"Yeah", Daryl huffed, climbing off her bed, "When I start earning some money… but I'm heading out. I need to go check out some guy's car, said he'd be home from work now"

"Alright"

He backed up towards the door, "I'll be back"

"Good", She responded, not looking up from her book. She listened to him stomp through the trailer, waiting to hear the door slam shut, but when she didn't hear anything, she looked up, muttering to herself, "He better close that door…"

"Aye 'Chonne! Come 'ere for a sec'!", He called through the trailer.

She furrowed her brows as she climbed off her bed and left her room. She shuffled through the small walk way, wondering what Daryl wanted, and when she reached the front door, her frown only deepened.

Rick was stood beside a curious looking Daryl, who inched past him slowly, obviously trying to work out the reason for the other teens visit.

Michonne crossed her arms over her chest, "What are you doing here?"

"Well… you've gone back to avoiding me, and as nice as Glenn is, he's not really that good with repeating information back… and our presentations is due tomorrow…", He raised his eyebrows at her, and she didn't miss the way he swiftly eyed the basketball jersey she wore, "You did say we could do evenings…"

"So you thought you'd just turn up here?"

"...Well, yeah. It's not like I could call and ask. And trying to finding you at school has been damn near impossible"

She stared at him, "As long as you've done your part and I've done mine, then it will be fine-"

"But you've decided to cover a whole range of stuff in your speech, and I don't think we'll get extra credit for repeating the same thang twice"

He had her in a corner and she was sure he knew it. She tried to think of a plausible reason to send him away but there was none, and as much as she didn't want to see him, he was right about their presentation. She nearly groaned when she glanced over her shoulder, checking that her home was in a presentable state, "Fine."

She spun on her heel and stalked back in her home, allowing him to see himself in. To avoid another possible run in with her father, she led him to her bedroom, hoping that room wasn't a mess also. Despite only just being in there, the level of tidiness she would let Rick see, compared to Daryl, would be substantially different.

"Sit", She instructed, taking a seat on her bed, "Just give me your work and I'll go over it".

"Alright, then give me your work too", He countered, taking a seat also.

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes, so instead she snatched her notebook from behind her and held it out to him, "There"

They exchanged books and sat reading in silence. Michonne could barely even focus on the words on the page, her mind was focusing on the fact that Rick was in her bedroom. Sitting on her bed. The faint smell of his favourite cologne seemed more potent, filling the small space around them. She had thought of such moments in the dead of the night, wondering what it would be like to lay next to him, but that was all it was. Thoughts. To have him physically there made her undeniably nervous, and it was all too inappropriate for her.

"You've gone into my point. Here", He used his smallest finger to highlight one of the paragraphs on the page as he turned the book toward her.

She tore her eyes away from his work, squinting at the section in question, "...Only by a sentence"

"And here.", He pointed to another line.

She groaned as she looked on the bed behind her, grabbing the pink highlighter she had been using earlier, "Here. Just go over the parts that you think would suit your part better"

"I don't think you'd want me to do that. This whole page would be pink"

It was a little, silly joke, but a smile still crept onto Michonne's lips, although she swiftly removed it, "Just pick them out"

He took the pen from her, his thumb brushing over hers in the process, making her stomach flip upside down, "Alright"

She stared at the page of his book hard, determined to concentrate on what he had written down and she couldn't help but notice his impeccable handwriting in the process. It was easy to read, but still much neater than hers, and with less mistakes.

"I didn't mean to sound like I was being judgemental the other day", He announced, tilting his head to look at her.

But she didn't dare look at him, "Just... forget it"

"I can't do that just yet. I don't take back anythan' that I said because I meant it all and still do, but I just didn't really think about my delivery that much"

She exhaled tiredly, "Got it."

His gaze sailed elsewhere as he continued to speak, "...My grandparents raised me. My mom… she wasn't well. She could barely look after herself, let alone me. She's in a hospital somewhere upstate getting looked after… she doesn't talk or anythan, just kind of sits there…" .

Michonne was frozen in place as she listened to him, completely caught off guard by his admission.

"My dad… when it all got too much, he just left. Left her and me. I don't have any idea where he is… so my grandparents took care of me since I was pretty young, but now… my grandmother's memory is messing up. She struggles to remember thangs sometimes… and me and my grandfather we know it's gonna' get worse… and we plan to get some help for her before that…"

She watched him with sad eyes, feeling horrible for him.

"I don't think anyone should be afraid to ask for help if they need it. Whatever the circumstances. My mother didn't ask for help with me because she wanted to prove that she was fine and she could look after me… and she nearly killed us both. I obviously don't know how bad thangs are with your dad but as I said, I don't think it's somethan' you should have to deal with. Especially alone…"

Michonne turned away from him when he looked at her, not wanting him to see her wet eyes, "I get it."

"Do you?"

"Yes. I do. I get that I should get help for him, but it's just not that easy. He's lost a lot and it's been tough on him and-", She stopped herself when she felt a lump in her throat, "He's just a little broken right now, and that's it"

Rick peered at her carefully, his eyes covering every inch of her face, "...He still needs help"

She sniffed, wiping the stray tear that fell from the corner of her eye, "I know. I do know"

It appeared that he was finally going to leave the discussion alone, and the two of them continued to go over each other's notes quietly. Having him confess to her about his own problems was quite the eye opening experience. To be frank, she didn't know much about his family, and Lori had only ever mentioned that he lived with his grandparents on one occasion. It made her see him in a new light, a brighter one than before, which didn't help matters. She was falling even further down the rabbit hole, and it was getting harder to see anything else but him.

As soon as they were done he stood up to leave, content with their quick study session, and she followed him out her home, feeling less relieved than she thought she would.

"I'm sorry about your mom. And your grandma", She announced to his back as he stepped onto the gravel.

He turned and looked at her, his mouth opening and closing for a few moments as he searched for his reply, "Don't be. These thangs happen"

She nodded, her gaze falling on her miss matched socks as she leaned on the door frame.

"Don't hide from me anymore"

Her eyes darted up to his, feeling embarrassed for a countless time.

"I don't like that, and you don't need to that."

She hesitated, not sure what to reply, so she settled for another nod.

He seemed to hover in his spot for a second or two, before finally breathing in a husky tone, "...Bye, Michonne"

Her heart sighed, "Bye"


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four:

"You should be proud of yourself Rick. You did well. I'll be sure to let coach Ford know about this"

Rick smiled back at Mrs Peletier as he backed away from her desk, "Thanks"

"No problem, see you tomorrow"

The teen could breathe a long sigh of relief once he left the classroom. He was pleased with how well his presentation with Glenn and Michonne went, and it was one more thing off his list.

"We did good", Glenn beamed, meeting Rick in the hall as students went for their lunch.

"We did. I'm glad it's over with to be honest", Rick sighed, peering through the crowds.

"You heading to the lunch hall?"

"Nah, practise", Rick groaned, rubbing the back of his neck with his free hand, "Coach hasn't forgiven me, yet"

"Ah… that sucks", Glenn cringed, giving him a sympathetic look, "Well, see you in Geometry"

Rick gave him a nod, "Yeah alright, later"

He had always seen Glenn around school, and the two never crossed paths because of their different social circles, but having spent more time with him, Rick was ashamed that the two hadn't spoken sooner and the same could be said for Michonne.

Even though he had always known she had always been guarded around him, he was sure that he'd managed to show her there was no need for her hostility towards him, although after seeing what she had to deal with at home, he couldn't necessarily blame her. He suspected that her father may have had a problem with alcohol, but witnessing him lying face down on the gravel outside their trailer, with a distressed Michonne stood over him, came as a shock, and he felt compelled to help.

Turning up at her home after the incident was a risky move, but he knew she was avoiding him after that night, and he was going to speak to her one way or another. However, he wasn't expecting to end up in her bedroom, and something about the setting made him feel uneasy. It wasn't as if he wasn't used to being in other people's rooms, as he had done plenty of times, but something about sitting on her bed, only inches away from her, knocked him off centre.

After changing into his football uniform, Rick went out to the football field, where Coach Ford and a few other teammates had already began practicing.

"Grimes! Get out there and warm up!", The coached yelled as soon as he caught sight of him.

Rick nodded, sprinting to join the others. He was more than determined to prove to the older man that his performance at the last game was a one off, and that he was still one of the best players. He was agile, fast, and he could execute the coach's game plan with pure precision, and he would never allow himself to become so distracted again.

Or so he thought, because it was only ten minutes into practice, when Rick stopped to take a breath from running drills, he noticed Michonne sat on the bleachers, reading a book with her legs crossed on the bench. It wasn't as if he hadn't practiced in front of her before, but that was at a time when they hardly spoke, or even paid attention to one another. Now, he was very aware of her presence.

"Hey, lover boy", Coach Ford teased, blocking Rick's view of Michonne, "Now I'm not one to pay attention, nor care, about what you guys get up to once you step off this grass, but I couldn't help but notice that your eyes seem to like the view up there, rather than down here"

Rick frowned at the man, "I was just looking-"

"Anything over ten seconds ain't a look. That's staring, son. Any longer and it would be classed as stalking", Coach Ford raised his eyebrows at Rick.

"I have a girlfriend", Rick stated proudly.

The coach looked up at Michonne, then back at Rick, beginning to chuckle, "Oh boy, no wonder you've been playing like a blind kid on drugs. Go on, line up with the others"

Rick's mouth fell open in offence, but he still did as he was told, jogging over to the other players.

He didn't like what his couch was inferring about Michonne, as he was just looking up at her. He didn't know how long he looked at her for, but he was certain he wasn't leering. He could admit, to himself of course, that she was an attractive girl; he found her dark features were sultry and alluring, but he didn't look at her that way. He couldn't look at her that way. He was in a relationship with Lori, and Lori and Michonne were friends. It would all make for a very complicated situation.

Rick tore himself from his thoughts when he realised they had been waiting for the coach to appear, and when he looked in the same direction as the other team members, he was horrified to see the coach speaking to Michonne. She had risen from her seat, and looked like she was ready to leave the area, which only scared Rick, as he wondered what was said to her to make her evacuate her favourite spot.

By the end of the school day Rick still found himself bothered, and he wished his coach hadn't said anything to him at all.

"We need to wait for Michonne, she's coming over to my house for a dress to wear tomorrow", Lori informed, using the driver side window as a mirror to fix her ponytail.

Rick watched her for a moment, "You're not still trying to go through with that little plan of yours-"

"Of course I am", Lori scoffed, "I'm getting her in a dress, aren't I?"

"Did you forget what happened with Shane and Daryl? What Shane said?"

His girlfriend frowned at him, "Yeah? So what? That was between them, not her and Shane"

"He's still her friend. She's not going to want to date the guy that got into a fight with her friend"

"Not at first, a. These things take time- in fact,

I'm going to need you to talk to Shane-"

"No", He refused, shaking his head, "Leave me out of this"

"Oh, come on!", Lori stamped her foot on the concrete, "Just find out what he thinks about her-"

"If Shane likes her then Shane can do somethan' about it himself, on his own terms. The same goes for her."

She rolled her eyes at him, "You are no fun, at all"

He sighed, shaking his head at her as he looked elsewhere, "Listen, I might not be able to stay out too long tomorrow night. I have to take my grandma out early on Sunday"

Lori huffed, crossing her arms, "Really? You tell me this now?"

"I only found out this morning"

She eyed him for a few moments, before throwing her hands up in exasperation, "Fine, I get it"

"Hey", Michonne strolled up to them, offering a small, awkward smile.

"Oh great! You're here, let's go", Lori walked around to the passenger side door, while Rick waited for Michonne to pass him before he got into the vehicle.

"This is going to be fun", She muttered under her breath dryly, causing a snort of laughter to leave Rick involuntarily.

Luckily for him, Lori didn't seem to pick up on his strange mood as they left the school parking lot, as she was too busy talking about her birthday party, "I'm going to the salon at three and I'm getting my hair half up, half down, with big curls and glitter on it, and I'm getting a French manicure- Oh! Hey! Why don't you come? There's a lady there that does the best make up-"

"No, thank you", Michonne declined from the back seat, "It's bad enough that I'm even considering wearing a dress-"

"Fine! Then I'll do your makeup", Lori grinned, "You never know… you might catch the eye of a few guys…"

Michonne snorted.

"Hey… talking of guys, what do you think of Shane?", Lori probed, causing Rick to glance at her with a raised brow, then in the rear-view mirror at Michonne.

"He's a big, stupid jock", She answered easily, her top lip curled in disgust, then she looked towards Rick, "No offence"

"None taken", Rick smirked, purely because he knew Lori wouldn't like that answer.

"Hey! He's not! Okay- I get that he and Daryl got into it but that was just guys being guys. Daryl probably wasn't innocent in that and neither was Shane. They're both just… guys. So forget about that, let me tell you about him-"

'I don't want to know about him-"

"He's nice, he drives, his grades are okay… he's got nice hair-"

"I don't care if he has great hair"

"He thinks you're cute!", Lori blurted out, causing Rick's eyes to widen at the windshield, "He told Rick that he thinks your cute and he was asking if you're coming to the party tomorrow. I think that's pretty sweet, right? And I bet he'll even be sorry about what happened with Daryl when he finds out you guys were such good friends…"

Rick was stunned, and he couldn't believe how his girlfriend could blatantly lie about him while he was sat next to her, especially as he had only just refused to help with her plan moments earlier.

"...He's still an ass", Michonne responded, but with less conviction than before.

"You just need to get to know him. First impressions and all. You know how some guys act like idiots around the girls they like because they don't know how to express themselves? Yeah, Shane's one of those guys, so just give him a chance?"

Rick watched Michonne roll her eyes, "I'm not going out of my way to talk to him-"

"You don't need to! When he approaches you… just be… civil?"

"Yeah, yeah", Michonne groaned.

When they arrived outside Lori's home, the girl leaned over and gave him a kiss on the cheek before exiting the vehicle, "I'll call you later!"

"Bye", Michonne breathed, following the other girls lead.

"Alright, bye", He called back, only looking at her for a brief moment.

Rick wished he had spoken up, and refuted Lori's claims about Shane, but the lie had caught him off guard, and he had to talk to Lori before Michonne and Shane came face to face.

When he reached his own home, he was greeted to the smell of burning, and immediately sprinted to the kitchen, we're smoke was seeping out the sides of the oven. He turned it off and opened the door, only to be smacked in the face with heat and even more smoke.

He almost choked as he opened the doors to the back yard, "Grandma?! Grandma?!"

"David? Is that you?", His grandmother appeared at the door, wearing her gardening clothes, "Oh my god! What happened?!"

"Think you let it on too long", Rick responded, not paying attention to the fact that she called him by his father's name.

"Oh dear!", She walked around one side of the counter and Rick went the other way, both meeting by the oven, "I was trying to make you some lamb chops for dinner"

"It's alright. I'll go get us somethan' to eat later…", Rick used the oven mitt to retrieve the tray in the oven, and he couldn't help but laugh at the sight of the shrivelled up meat.

His grandmother began to chuckle, "You said you like your meat well done, right?"

"I did, didn't I?"

"We'll go together. I've been working in the mud all day, so I need to stretch my legs…", She untied the belt that she wore with her gardening tools, "How was school? You have a game tonight?"

"Nah, not tonight", He huffed, placing the tray on the counter.

"You know your father used to play football too-"

"Yeah… so we got that hospital appointment on Sunday…", He hated to cut her off, but he felt there were more important things to discuss.

She waved her hand dismissively at him, "I don't know why. It's your grandfather that's trying to drag me there"

"He just wants to make sure you're alright. We both do"

"I know, I know. My mind's been slipping a little but I just need to take my iron tablets… maybe some omega three…", She began to mutter to herself as she wandered out the kitchen, leaving Rick to stare at her back.

To see his grandmother slowly start to lost her memory brought Rick such sadness. Both of his grandparents meant so much to him, and he had sworn to look after them the way they had looked after him when the time came, he just wish he wouldn't have to make good on that promise so soon.

His mind would only wonder to his mother every now and then, but when he did find himself thinking about her, he would question if she even remembered him, let alone thought about him. It was a subject he didn't readily approach with anyone, and he was surprised at himself when he spewed his background to Michonne, as the only other person to know about his struggles, was Shane.

Once Rick's grandfather arrived home, he and his grandmother left to buy dinner, after explaining to the Grimes patriarch why there was burnt lamb chops on the counter.

"You know what I'm in the mood for? A nice, juicy burger", His grandmother confessed, "And a milkshake. Strawberry"

Rick raised his eyebrows at her, "Yeah? We'll go to the diner then"

"Is the diner still in town? I haven't been there in years…"

"Remember, we went a few months ago? When Uncle Richard was in town…"

"Oh?", She frowned at the windshield, "We did?"

"Yeah. And he brought his new girlfriend… the one you didn't like?"

"Oh! Yes! The loud one, right? Kept yelling thangs at me?"

"That's the one", Rick chortled, pulling into the parking lot.

"I couldn't stand her"

"No, you couldn't"

His grandmother beamed at the establishment when she got out of the vehicle, as if she was retrieving all her old memories of times she spent there. Rick led her to the entrance, holding the door open for her to enter first.

"Your grandfather will have a hot dog. He likes those. With lots of mustard", She informed to Rick as they perched on the bar stools, "He doesn't like fries though"

Rick wasn't completely sure if that was correct, but he still nodded, "Alright"

The waitress was soon over to take their order, and the two of them sat waiting patiently, all while his grandmother fed him small little stories about the past. He had noticed that it was easier for her to relay older information, and he never interrupted her, as she seemed so pleased to talk about happier times.

"So how's Lauren doing?"

"Lori", He corrected gently, "She's fine. It's her birthday tomorrow so she's having a party"

"Really? You need to get her something nice"

"I plan to…", His eyes sailed past his grandmother when he noticed a familiar figure stroll into the diner.

Michonne seemed to notice him the same time he noticed her, and he didn't miss the way she hesitated for a moment before giving a small wave, "Hey"

"Hey", He greeted back, glad that she was actually trying to be polite.

"Well, who is this?", His grandmother smiled, spinning on her stool to look at Michonne.

"Grandma, this is Michonne, a friend from school…"

"Hi", Michonne smiled back.

"Hello there! Aren't you a beauty? That lovely skin with such a pretty smile"

Rick was taken aback to see Michonne look so shy, "Thank you"

"You're very welcome. I haven't seen you around here before? You just move in?"

"Uh, no, not really, we've lived here for two years now"

"And you're a friend of Rick's? How come I ain't ever seen you before?"

Rick stilled, but Michonne continued to answer his grandmother's question, "We never really got a chance to hang out before"

"Oh well, ain't that a shame"

"Your order", The waitress called, placing the white paper bags on the counter in front of them.

"Oh, I got it", His grandmother insisted, reaching into her purse, "Your grandfather gave me some cash…"

"I already paid for it", Rick rested his hand on her arm to stop her, "It's alright"

"You did? Oh, alright then"

Rick stood up, looking back at Michonne, "So are you here getting dinner too?"

She shook her head, "Nah, job interview"

His eyebrows sprung up, "Oh?"

"Yeah"

He had a feeling that she probably had to get a job as her father was no longer reliable, "Well good luck"

"Thanks"

His grandmother hopped off the stool, "Well it was lovely meeting you...uh"

"Michonne", Rick reminded softly.

"Michonne", The older woman snapped her fingers, "That's it"

"It was nice meeting you too", Michonne stepped out of their way to allow them to pass, "Enjoy your meal"

"You're already getting into the spirit of thangs here", Rick teased with a crooked smile.

He could tell she tried not to laugh at his terrible joke, but failed, "Hilarious"

"You're laughing, ain't you?", She shook her head at him as she grinned, and Rick found himself unable to move as he watched her, taking in every little detail of her face. It was then that realisation hit him like a lightning bolt, and he straightened up, glancing over his shoulder at his grandmother, who had been watching the two of them with a raised brow. He cleared his throat, "Uh, see you tomorrow…"

"Bye", She chimed, giving him one of her quick waves.

Rick felt as if he had been sitting in a dark room, and someone finally turned on the light. Discovering that he may very well like Michonne was a sobering moment, and even more so, when his grandmother decided to touch on the subject.

"...You alright there, son?"

He nodded, keeping his eyes on the road as he looked for an opportunity to drive it the parking lot, "Yeah, fine"

The older woman eyed him suspiciously, "You like that girl, don't you?"

He could have choked on his tongue, "She's just a friend from school, grandma"

It was as if she ignored him, "...Looks like you've gotten yourself in a little bit of a mess, huh?"

He shook his head, "No, mam"

"Don't you _'No mam_ ' me. I know what I saw there", Her tone was stern, but still light, "You can't go around causing trouble like that, son"

"I know", He sighed, accepting defeat.

"Good. You're a good boy. Smart. You have integrity. Remember that when you're making decisions"

"I will"

Rick's mind was busy that night. He kept replaying every conversation he had with Michonne, trying to pinpoint where things changed. It was nearly impossible. Even when he thought back to their arguments, it wasn't the kind of arguments he'd have with anyone else, and he began to question if it was at all possible that she felt something towards him too.

The guilt he felt suddenly made sense. The guild was for Lori. For his girlfriend. While he hadn't done anything with Michonne, his compassion and concern for her wasn't coming from just a friendly place. He considered that to be unacceptable. He and Lori had been together for two years, and while they were still only eighteen, he knew he loved her and he knew he cared about her, but with Michonne in the equation, his perception changed.

He didn't like Lori's manipulative side. He didn't like the fact that she thought of herself as above people with less, and he could bet one of his limbs that if Lori found out where Michonne lived, it would affect her view of her friend. It all made Rick feel so uncomfortable that he started to fidget with anything in reach. He didn't wish to cause a mess, but it seemed that he was already knee deep init.

The day of Lori's birthday party was a normal one for him. His grandfather had him working around the home at the cracking of dawn, then his grandmother had him drive into town to help her run errands, giving the opportunity to pick up a gift for Lori. While he would have preferred to stay in bed, he was glad for the distractions.

He lounged around his home for the rest of the afternoon, until it was time for him to get ready. He showered, then dressed in a white t-shirt with black jeans, throwing his varsity jacket on over it, before bidding his grandparents goodnight.

While he liked to relax and enjoy himself, parties weren't something he was desperate to attend. The most he drank was a can of beer, and he never danced, so most of the time he stood around watching others. If it wasn't Lori's birthday, he probably wouldn't have seen the need to go at all.

Cars were already beginning to park outside his girlfriend's home, one of them belonging to Shane, who waited for Rick on the lawn, "You ready for this?"

"Yeah", Rick lied, his eyes scanning around to see who else was in attendance.

"I should have let you pick me up, I wanted to get wasted tonight"

"Well I gotta' head out early so you would have been stuck here"

"Head out early? Why?"

"Taking my grandmother to the hospital tomorrow morning"

Shane's eyebrows sprung up as she approached the front door, "Getting worse?"

"Yeah. A little"

"Sorry, man"

The home was decorated in pink and white, with streamers and fairy lights hanging from the ceilings. Pictures of Lori were placed on the walls, and there were several tables scattered around with snacks and drinks available. Music began to play from somewhere in the large house, and the two male teens decided to see where it was coming from.

They ended up in the dining room, which was no longer a dining room at all, and Rick wondered where the grand table and chairs went. Lori was stood beside the DJ, obviously yelling at him, but what caught Rick's eyes was not his angry girlfriend, but her friend that stood beside her.

Michonne wore a white dress that clung to her, stopping right in the middle of her thighs. Her hair was up and away from her face, in a ponytail, and her lean legs looked even longer in the heels she wore. Rick hated himself for being blown away, and he soon learned that he was not the only one.

"Who the hell is that?", Shane hissed, nudging Rick.

Rick was tempted to lie and say that he didn't know, "Michonne. Lori's friend… and Daryl's"

Shane's eyes were glued to her, "She goes to our school?"

"She does"

He slowly nodded, taking a step forward, "Well let me go introduce myself-"

Rick put out his hand to stop him, repeating, "Daryl's friend"

Shane shrugged, "So what?"

"She ain't like the girls you mess around with, Shane. She'll call you out on it", Rick tried to make his warning sound light.

"I wouldn't mind if she does", The other teen smirked, pushing past his hand and heading over to the DJ.

Rick couldn't describe the feeling brewing in his stomach. It was as if he was about to watch something terrible happen and he could do nothing to stop it. He followed Shane over to the two teens, catching the tail end of Lori's verbal lashing.

"I'm Shane", His friend beamed, holding his hand out to Michonne.

She looked at his extended limb and rose an eyebrow at it, "I know who you are"

Shane was not deterred as he dropped his hand, "Listen, I know me and your friend were both wrong for getting into it the other day, but you know that old saying, boys will be boys"

She was not amused, giving him an ice stare that she had previously given Rick on occasion.

"I'm sorry", Shane held his hands up in surrender, "We should have just walked away"

Michonne rolled her eyes, "You got that right"

"So what do you think?", Lori quizzed, planting herself in front of Rick, "Great, ain't it?"

"Yeah", He nodded, pulling out a small gift box from his pocket, "Here"

She gasped, taking it from him, "What is it?"

"Open it"

She did, popping open the lid and gasping a second time when she saw the silver chain with a little heart pendant attached, "I love it! Thank you! Michonne, look"

Michonne leaned over and peered in the box, smiling, "That's beautiful"

"Right?"

"I'll help you put it on", The other girl prompted, and she helped Lori put the necklace on.

Rick was beginning to feel uncomfortable, and with nothing to fidget with, he rubbed his thumb and index finger together.

"I need to find my mom and tell her to check on the fireworks for later", Lori announced, "So don't move cause I still need help"

"Got it", Rick and Michonne both responded, then sharing a quick, strange look.

"Good".

Rick watched his girlfriend begin to stalk away, but stopped in the doorway, side-tracked by her guests. He awkwardly turned back to Shane and Michonne, wishing he were elsewhere.

"So… you live around here?", Shane asked Michonne in his best 'charming' voice.

"No. I don't", She replied with a cutting tone, "I'm actually a piece of trailer trash, too"

Shane's eyes narrowed for the briefest second, before popping open in shock, and Rick hated how he found some pleasure in seeing his reaction, "Oh… uh, listen, I didn't meant that"

"Yes, you did", She rolled her eyes at him, "The least you can do is own the shit that falls from your mouth"

Shane looked to his friend with the most astonished look, and Rick just raised an eyebrow at him, as if to say _'I told you so_ '. The overly confident male cleared his throat as he straightened up, "Alright, fine. I said it and I meant it, about him"

"There we go", She responded dryly.

"Look, I already admitted that I messed up, and did some thangs that I shouldn't have, but give me a chance to prove to you that I'm not just some thoughtless asshole"

Michonne's lip began to curl, and Rick was expecting her to really let him have it, but instead she just snorted, "Yeah. Whatever"

Shane beamed at her, while Rick continued to pretend as if he wasn't really paying attention to their conversation.

"Hey Rick, Shane", Tyrese greeted as he joined them, giving Michonne a friendly smile.

"Hey man, you made it", Shane grinned, patting his friend on the back, "Thought you didn't finish work until later?"

Shane and Tyrese soon started their own conversation, leaving Rick to feel as if he had to say something to Michonne, "So… How'd the job interview go?"

She slowly inhaled, "Uh, good. I start next week..."

"Yeah? That's good", He nodded, and the next question slipped from his lips before he could stop himself, "What about your dad?"

She dropped her gaze as she folded her arms over her chest, "...He lost his job, which is a good thing because then he doesn't have easy access to money"

Rick wasn't completely surprised to hear that, "...Maybe now's a good time to get him some help"

She smirked, shaking her head as she looked past him, "Yeah, when we can afford it"

He shifted his stance, "What if he just had someone to talk to?"

She gave a little shrug as she thought about it, "He thinks everything's fine and dandy when he's sober. He won't admit he has a problem, the only person he talks to is my…"

He squinted at her as he waited for her to continue.

She shook her head again, "Why are we even talking about this? Rick, just- thanks for your concern but this… this is my problem to solve"

He should have taken that as his queue to leave the topic alone, but he didn't, "What are you afraid of?"

Her eyes widened, and she took the smallest step back, "Why… what is your problem? You've got enough on your plate as it is so why are you… do you think I'm some kind of charity case or something?"

Rick's brows knitted together in frustration, " _What_? What are you talking about?"

"Does it make you feel better about your own problems to look down on someone like me?"

"No, Michonne, that's not what's going on here", He insisted firmly.

"Oh poor, Michonne! Her mom's dead and her drunk dad who can't keep a job!", She threw her hands up in the air as she mocked herself, "Let me swoop in and save her from the trailer park!"

"What is going on?", Lori quizzed angrily, looking from Rick to Michonne.

"Nothing. Nothing at all", He lied.

Lori didn't take her eyes off Michonne, "...Did you just say-"

"Hey Lori! Happy birthday!", Someone called from behind, leading the girl in question to spin around.

"You made it! Thanks!", Lori cheered happily, and Rick breathed a sigh of relief a little too soon, since as soon as Michonne stepped past the two of them, his girlfriend grabbed hold of his arm and hissed, "Did she just say something about the trailer park?"

He lowered his voice, "Not now, Lori"

Her eyes grew wide, "Oh my god, she lives in the trailer park? You knew? How did you know?"

He groaned, "I told you, I went up there with my grandfather-"

"And you let me give her one of _my_ dresses to wear?!", Lori gasped, letting go of his arm as she looked around the room, "Where is she?!"


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five:

Michonne could only wish that she could peel the dress that she wore off, then kick off her heels and run home, but that didn't seem to be an option, so instead she sat outside, on a neighbour's wall, occasionally watching the other teens funnel into Lori's home.

She knew exactly why she got so annoyed with Rick, though she was sure he didn't. The moment she knew she was developing feelings for him, she shut him out, building a brick wall between the two of them in her mind, but the wall had fallen, and he was left in full view to her. She thought of him as caring, not only to her but others around him. He held such sincerity in nearly everything he did and it was appealed to her beyond belief. She was fighting a losing battle with him, and she could no longer take it.

"Hey Michonne! You're here!"

Glenn appeared, holding hands with a cheerleader she had seen many times before. They both approached her wearing friendly smiles, and Michonne had to force herself to do the same, "Yeah, I am"

"This is my girlfriend, Maggie"

The girl waved, "Hey"

"Hey", She waved back.

"Are you not going in?", Glenn used his thumb to point over his shoulder.

"Uh, yeah. In a little while, just needed some air"

"Oh okay. You want us to wait with you or-"

"No, it's fine… thanks… You guys go in, I'll catch with you later", She insisted.

"Alright", Glenn nodded, and they backed up towards the home.

Michonne sigh turned into a groan as she looked the other way, questioning if she really wanted to go back inside. She wished she had Daryl with her at the very least, but the other teen had started his first day at work, and even if he hadn't, he still wouldn't have come along to a party of Lori's.

"You hiding out here?", Shane stepped into view, with a smile forming on his face.

She could have groaned a second time, "No. Just wanted some air"

He sat down on the wall beside her, and Michonne was sure he could have left a friendlier distance, "So how about you tell me about yourself?"

"I've been going to the same school as you for two years, if you wanted to know anything then you would have asked then", She replied flatly, "Don't let the dress fool you, it changes nothing"

The teen stared at the side of her face, "You really do like bustin' balls, don't you?"

"Only when the persons so transparent, it hurts"

"I don't know what that means, but I'm sure you just said in there you'd give me a chance?"

She rolled her eyes, "Yeah, I did, but that doesn't mean I'm going to wipe the slate completely clean"

"Are you always like this? I saw you get into it with Rick in there, and he doesn't argue with anybody, so what's your problem?"

She wished she went to one of the walls further down the street, "I didn't 'get into it with Rick' and I don't have a problem"

"You sure about that?"

He arched his eyebrow at her when she finally looked at him, but only for a second, as she rolled her eyes back over to the other side of the street, growing tired of the boy. She didn't care what he may have told Rick, as she couldn't stand him one bit.

"Michonne, we need to talk-"

"Lori, stop it, now"

Her head whipped around when she heard the voices, and she saw her friend engaging in a silent battle with her boyfriend. She slowly stood up, her stomach twisting and turning as she feared the worst, "What's going on?"

"Don't do this", Rick warned, wearing the most serious expression that Michonne had ever seen.

Lori looked at her with hard eyes, "We need to talk. Alone"

"There's no coming back from this-"

"Rick, can you leave please so I can talk to her, please?", The birthday girl snapped, "This doesn't concern you-"

"It's not about whether it concerns me, you're about to do somethan' really low, and I'm not about to sit back and just watch it happen-"

"You should be glad I'm not mad at you! You knew and you didn't even tell me-"

"It was not my business to tell, and it's certainly not your business to know"

"When she's wearing my clothes then it is!"

Michonne began to frown, "What are you-"

"See that? That's what I have a problem with, Lori. This attitude of yours is what I have a problem with because it makes me sick to hear you talk like that", Rick issued sternly, "I don't want any part of that"

Her eyes widened, "Excuse me?"

"Damn", Michonne heard Shane mutter as he inched past them with his head down.

Rick unleashed a mouthful, "I don't know when you started to think that you were better than everybody else, but it's worn me out since. I thought you'd reel it in sooner or later but it's like you're just getting worse, and I'm not gonna' sit back and let you do this to someone who's meant to be a friend"

Lori's mouth hung open for a moment, her eyes darting all over his face, but she recovered quickly, straightening up, "We will talk about this later"

"If you do this, then we won't"

The friction between the two of them was almost unbearable. Michonne wanted to step away to give them some privacy but she had a feeling that their argument has something to do with her, which was even more unsettling.

Lori, being the stubborn girl that she was, seemed to have made up her mind. She looked at Rick, and Michonne, before spinning on her heel and stomping across the lawn.

"What's going on?", Michonne repeated again, frowning at Rick.

He ran his hands over his face, "I'm gonna' drop you home"

Her head reeled back, "Uh, what?"

"You don't need to be here"

"That's not something you get to decide", She almost chuckled at him, "So what was that-"

"Why didn't ever tell Lori where you lived?", He quizzed, turning to face her.

Her eyes widened before she shrugged, "It just never came up. She didn't ask-"

"Has she ever told you what she thinks about the trailer park?"

Michonne shook her head, "It's never came up"

"Why do you think that is?"

"I don't know! But _you_ obviously do, so why don't you-"

"Probably because she knows your friend lives there", He breathed, "She wouldn't insult him to your face-"

"Insult him?", She repeated, putting the pieces of the puzzle together in record breaking speed.

Rick dropped his gaze to the cement below them for a time, "You don't need to be here-"

"She's mad because I live in a-"

"Yes. That's exactly what she's mad about. She's invited you into her home, you're wearing her dress, and all the time you've lived somewhere that she thinks is… below her"

Michonne felt something akin to being slapped across the face. She knew that she and Lori were two very different people, but she didn't think the girl would so easily turn on her just because of where she resided. She looked towards Lori's home for the briefest of moments, before turning around and walking away.

"Michonne, wait-"

She didn't expect to feel him grab hold of her wrist, so she yanked her hand away in surprise, "I'm going home"

"Then let me take you", He urged, waving his hand in the direction of his vehicle.

"No!", She snapped, "Can you just leave me alone, please?"

His steely blue gaze didn't leave her face as he shook his head, "No"

"No?", She repeated with a disbelieving tone.

"No. I can't. I've been trying to but I can't. It's damn near impossible for me to"

In all the time she'd harboured feelings for Rick, she never once stopped to consider whether he'd felt the same, and what would happen if she did. She felt as if she'd been slapped a second time, which was more than enough in the space a few minutes.

"Do you realise what you're saying to me?", Was all she could think to say.

She saw him slowly inhale, "I do"

"Then what is wrong with you? Why would you even think to-"

"It's not one sided, is it?", She wasn't sure if he meant for the statement to sound like a question, "That's why you've been the way you have towards me?"

"We are standing in front of your girlfriend's house on her birthday!", She hissed, "Why would you even think to admit something like-"

"Would you rather I admitted it when I realised yesterday? Or should I have waited until tomorrow? When you may have already changed your opinion about Shane? Should I have broken up with her first? Would that have made it better-"

"She's still your girlfriend"

"I know that!", He threw his hands up in exasperation, "I've been feeling guilty since before I even knew that I felt somethan' you, so I don't need anyone to tell me that because I know, and I didn't want to cause a mess-"

"Then leave me alone! Stay away from me and I'll stay away from you!", She issued with finality, "That's it, nothing else"

He only looked wounded for a second, his gaze trailing away from hers, "Is that what you want?"

Michonne spun on her heel and left him standing there, feeling a horrible tightness in her chest. Her eyes stung with tears that threatened to fall, but she wouldn't allow herself to do so. She hated crying, after all.

Her feet hurt from the moment she put the heels on, and after twenty minutes of walking, they were near enough numb. She stopped almost half a mile away from the trailer park to take them off, when the hum of a familiar motorcycle stopped near her.

Daryl pulled his helmet off and stared at her, "What the hell are you doing?"

She huffed, pulling the remaining sandal off, "Take me home, please?"

His eyes darted all over her, "Someone hurt you?"

She shook her head, "No"

He wasn't convinced, but he still held out the helmet to her, "Come on"

Daryl was the only person in her life that she considered herself close to, the closest thing she had to a brother, and it was for that reason that she wouldn't tell him about Rick, though she did tell him about what happened with Lori when they arrived back at her home.

"I fucking told you", He rasped angrily, pacing in her living room, "I told you she weren't no different from them other bitchy girls she runs around with-"

"I know", She agree, sitting comfortably in a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt.

"I should go over there and crash that little party of hers-"

"It doesn't matter. I don't even want to talk about it anymore"

"You should let a couple of pigs run around on that dress of hers and give it back to her covered in shit"

Laughter burst from her lips, "I should. Or use it to clean a couple cars"

An evil grin spread on Daryl's face, "We should"

"But we won't. It's a nice thought though", She dropped her head against the back of the couch, "We need to get out of here"

"Get our own place"

"We will", She smiled at the ceiling, "Our own trailer"

He sniggered, "I thought you'd want somethan' like your old place"

She thought back to her previous home into the city, "The penthouse… I used to miss it, well, I missed the space… but not anymore. I was always alone there anyway"

He threw himself down on the other side of the couch, "Your mom weren't around either?"

"More than my dad but… that's not really saying much"

Daryl began nibbling on his thumb nail, "Got it"

"Daryl! Where the hell are you, boy?!"

They both stilled when they heard his father's voice nearby. Michonne jumped up and pointed towards her bedroom, mouthing, "Go!"

Daryl stood up, shaking his head, "Nah-"

"Go in there now!", She hissed angrily, "If he sees you he might stay! He probably just wants money!"

Daryl looked towards the door when he heard banging on the side of the trailer.

Michonne pushed him, "Go! Now!"

It took a moment for him to move, but he finally did as he was told, sprinting to her bedroom. Michonne waited until she saw the door close, then went to face the older man. She was greeted to the smell of beer when the door opened, and the man stood swaying with narrowed eyes, in dirty unkempt clothes.

"Where's my boy?", He grunted.

"He hasn't been here for a while", She lied, hoping the man wouldn't wander around to the back of her home and see Daryl's bike.

"He ain't been around for a while? What's that mean?"

"I haven't seen him since last week"

"Is that right?"

She nodded, "Yeah"

His eyes darted behind her, "Where's ya' daddy?"

"Sleeping", She lied once again, not daring to tell the man that she was home alone.

He took an unsteady step back, "You're a good girl, ain't ya'? Always got ya' books with ya'... going to school and all that"

She was growing increasingly uncomfortable, tightening her hold on the door.

"Ya' got yourself a little boyfriend, yet?", He grinned, exposing his stained teeth.

"I have to study", She insisted, inching the door closed.

"That's good. That is- it's good that you study. But don't get one of these little idiots running around here… get a man. Men like me know how to take care of a girl like yourself-"

"It's late, Mr Dixon..."

He held his hands up in surrender, "Alright. I can take a hint. If you see that son of mine then tell him I'll be back soon, so he better stick around"

She closed the door without another word, and much to her surprise, Daryl was stood nearby with a switchblade in hand, wearing a scowl.

"You heard all that?", She sighed, leaning against the wall.

"He's a dirty ol' man", He muttered, pocketing his weapon.

Her eyes followed his movements, "You carry that around?"

"Not always"

She wasn't sure if she believed that, but if his father hadn't budged from her doorstep, she would have been glad that he had it. Standing up straight and tipping her head towards the couch, she gave him a small smile, "Come on, let's watch some old western movies"

"Alright"

It would have been nice for her to unload the problem she had faced with Rick to Daryl, but she was sure her friend would take great pleasure in teasing her about it, although they never discussed things of that nature before, so she wasn't entirely sure how he'd react.

They spent the rest of the weekend lounging around in her home, giving her the opportunity to keep her mind of Lori and Rick. She didn't know how she would face either of them again at school the following Monday, but she had a talent for completely ignoring people, so she planned to do just that.

She also didn't have the opportunity to think about them too much because of her father's disappearance. He hadn't returned home the Saturday night and she was growing worried, as he'd often at least return in the early hours of the morning. She sat up waiting for him on Sunday night with Daryl by her side, looking to the clock on the wall religiously, when she heard a rumble at the front door from her bedroom. Her friend sat up, while Michonne stomped down the hall to investigate.

Her father barely closed the door behind him, stumbling around in a circle, "Hey- hey there… baby"

"Where have you been?", She demanded, crossing her arms over her chest.

"I was out, I was out at the, the uh…", He raised his hand, "Over there. I was over there"

"Over where? You're not pointing at anything!"

"Hey… Mir-Miranda, just stop that, Okay?"

Her eyes narrowed, "It's not mom. It's Michonne"

"That's what I said", He chuckled, his stops sloppy as he walked over to the kitchen area, "That's what I said-"

Her father lost his balance as he spoke, leading him to fall diagonally through the air, smacking his head hard on the countertop on the way down, leaving him unconscious on the floor.

"Dad?!", Michonne's eyes widened with alert as she rushed over to him and dropped to her knees, "Oh my god- Daryl!"

The other teen rushed in only seconds later, "Shit, what happened?"

"He fell and hit his head", She panicked, trying to roll him on his side, "He's out cold"

Daryl crouched over the man, "We need to get a pillow or somethan', leave him there. My ol' man's done this plenty of times"

Michonne quickly got up to grab a cushion from the couch, "I just leave him like this? He hit his head, what if-"

"We can't tell how bad it is until he wakes up. He ain't ever done anythan' like this before?"

"Not that I know of", She returned to her father, placing the pillow on the floor while Daryl held the man's head up.

"Just leave him here. We have to wait it out"

She was sure Daryl had plenty of experience with such a situation, but Michonne was still fearful for any damage done to her father. It was amazing how quickly she regretted attempting to scold the man when he got home, instead of helping him to his room. She regretted a lot if things when it came to her father, the first being, not doing more to encourage him to seek help She knew he had a problem, and she knew that Rick was right about handling the man on her own, but she couldn't bear the thought of being without her remaining parent, even if it was for their benefit.

Daryl helped her move the man to his bedroom after he hadn't woken for quite some time, and Michonne stayed by his side for the rest of the night, hoping he'd wake feeling better.

By the time Monday rolled around, she still had no indication that her father was unharmed, so she decided to stay at home with him. It bothered her beyond belief that he's antics were putting her in such a situation, and she picked the perfect time to voice her troubles.

"I need to get you help now", She almost whispered, noticing the man's eyes flutter open, "You need help"

His eyes shut once again.

"Our life is already difficult and you don't need to make it any harder for us. It's not fair, and I can't- I won't allow things to stay like this. I don't care if I have to forget about college for a while… I will. I will and we'll help you first… because I need you, I've always needed you, more than anything", She huffed at the end of her speech, her eyes rolling around his room.

"I need you too", The man rasped, almost scaring Michonne right off his bed.

She took hold of his hand, "Thank you"

The relief she felt having her father regain consciousness was grand, and she finally got the chance to focus on a little work. It was the least she could do, having missed a full day of lessons. She didn't even know the proper procedure to skipping school, and ended up spluttering over the phone to the secretary, feeding the woman a batch of lies.

The afternoon sun was bright and warm, too warm, so she left the front door open as she sat in on the couch with her books around her, still able to hear her father if he called. Children were arriving home from school and playing nearby, while others took their regular spots in front of their homes, drinking and laughing. It were sounds and sights she had gotten used to, and more importantly, it was a part of her home, something she wasn't going to be ashamed of. While they weren't in the best financial position, she had felt more comfortable in the trailer park than she had done anywhere else.

A knock on the side of her home led her to emerge from her thoughts, and she looked to the doorway to see Rick stood in the doorway. She didn't know why she jumped up and the way she did, but she didn't rule out the fact that it was because she felt the greatest unease when he was inside her home.

He exhaled as he shifted his stance, "You weren't in today?"

"No", She answered quietly.

"...Everythan' alright?"

"Fine", She folded her arms over her chest, taking pigeon steps towards the door.

Even from a few feet away, his intense gaze still had the power to make her feel utterly helpless, "Can we talk?"

She shook her head, "No. We can't"

"Why not?"

"You know why", She furrowed her brows at him, "You shouldn't even be here"

He bit his lip when he dropped his gaze, preparing to speak again, "We aren't together anymore"

Her frown only intensified, "Is that meant to make it better?"

"That would have happened anyway", His voice grew firm, "But sometimes thangs happen that kind of speed up the process"

She scoffed, "So you think you can just turn up here, now?"

"I still would have turned up here, too"

Michonne felt such frustration, "Well you can't do that! I told you to stay away from me and I'll stay away from you-"

"I know exactly what you said, and I know I should respect that, but I told you that I can't. I wish I could, because I know that's what you want, but I can't. If you'd have turned up today then I wouldn't have worried about where you were because I would have seen you, but you weren't in and you never miss school, so I was worried and I came here"

His confessions didn't make it any easier for her to turn him away.

"Look, I get why you're acting this way and I don't blame you. No matter how you look at it… this is complicated. It will always be complicated because you were a friend of my ex-girlfriend. That's how we met, that's how we know each other, and that's just the way it is. But I don't think those circumstances should be the reason you and I should stay away from each other. You can't help who you like, and neither of us have actually done anythan' wrong here-"

"She was still my friend-"

"Was. She was your friend-"

"Just because we aren't friends anymore doesn't mean I want to hurt her on purpose"

"And you think I do?", He frowned at her, "I would prefer that the choices I make didn't hurt anybody at all. And I'm not asking you to run off with me in front of everybody, I'm asking you to… just stop running from me"

She dropped her gaze to the carpet as she considered his request. The idea that they were both free to do whatever they pleased with Lori out of the picture didn't sit well with her at all, but she had fought her feelings for Rick long enough. Her eyes darted back up to meet his when he stepped in front of her, leaving only a few inches of space between them. His hand slid down her arm leaving, a burning trail where his skin touched hers, and he took her hand in his, all while she was sure her heart was going to beat right out of her chest.

"Just stop running from me, please?"

His thumb stroked her knuckles tenderly, and she found herself breathing a barely audible, "Okay"

He pulled her against him, encasing her in his arms. The smell of his cologne invades her senses, and for the first time, she could enjoy it, placing her head on his chest. She no longer had to guess what it felt like to be held by him.

"...Why didn't you come in today?"

She quickly remembered her father, "My dad."

He sighed, his chin resting atop of her head, "Thought so"

With all things considered, she felt as if her things weren't as bad as they seemed. She wasn't going to continue to parent, nor pander her father, she was going to help him anyway she could. It wasn't something she expected to be easy, but it would be worth it in the long run, and that's all that mattered.

She was also no longer going to run from Rick, or her feelings for him, but she wasn't going to rush into anything with him either. He had only just broken up with Lori, and she didn't feel comfortable with the idea of the two of them jumping into anything so soon, but she wouldn't turn him away if he did turn up at her door again.

But then there was Lori, and Michonne had no idea what to expect when she saw the girl again, so she walked into school the next day prepared for anything.

Rick had left shortly after their embrace, having to check on his grandmother, and she didn't get a chance to clarify what happened when they were at school. The last thing she wanted was to draw attention to themselves, especially when students in general loved to gossip, and she was hoping they'd continue on as normal, but Rick seemed to have other ideas, as he was stood at her locker with Glenn and Maggie, chatting away without a care in the world.

"Hey, Michonne!", Glenn grinned when he caught sight of her.

"Hey", She smiled back, pulling her bag off her shoulder.

"We were just telling Maggie about what a terrible study group we make"

She cringed, looking to the other girl, "Yeah. Really bad…"

"Oh please, I bet none of you have had to work with Eugene before", Maggie insisted, "He doesn't even talk to anyone! He just gets on with his own thing"

"Sounds like someone else I know", Rick smirked, looking in Michonne's direction.

She felt her cheeks group warm, and she bit the inside of her lip to stop herself from smiling, "Yeah yeah"

"We need to get to class-"

"Alright, I'm coming, see you guys at lunch", Glenn announced, taking his girlfriend's hand.

"See ya'", Rick and Michonne both chimed while she fussed with her locker. Once the coast was clear she lowered her voice, "I thought you said-"

"This has always been my usual spot", He explained with a shrug.

She stopped what she was doing to give him a no-nonsense look.

"So I shouldn't stand here anymore?", He tilted his head in a way that Michonne found adorable.

"I just think it's going to look a little strange that you're still hanging around here…"

"Alright, so what do we suggest we do about that then? Because I only ever see you here… or in class… maybe out on the football field", His eyes narrowed, "Last time I had practice… what did coach say to you to get you to leave?"

She frowned at him as she recalled the memory, "Oh, he just asked me to sit somewhere else for my own safety. Then he said something about someone playing like a blind kid on drugs…"

Rick's face fell, and he shook his head as his gaze sailed off, "You play one bad game…"

A little giggle left her as she closed the door, "He's funny"

"He… he's one of a kind, to put it nicely", He pushed off the lockers and began to walk with her, causing her to look at him with widened eyes. He sighed, using his hand to motion in front of him, "Go ahead"

"Thank you"

"...We're going to the same class"

She almost grinned like a fool, "But still…"

"I know"

Michonne was nearly giddy, although she did her best not to let Rick, or anyone else know that. She barely ever had a reason to smile at school, and she was trying to behave as if that was still the case, but whenever she caught eyes with Rick, the temptation was rife.

Her day was going quite well, and with no sign of Lori around, Michonne just assumed the girl wasn't in, but when she went to her usual bench on the bleachers and saw a brown paper bag with her name written on it in big, bold letters, she realised that that may have not of been the case. She looked around before opening it, and much to her displeasure, there was a can of beer inside, with a pink bow tied around it. Michonne was ready to hurl the can away, when she saw the note in the bag; 'You can keep the dress.'

There was only two places Lori was likely to be during their lunch break, and that was either the Gym or the lunch room, and having checked the Gym, she knew exactly where else to look. Michonne knew Lori could be shallow, materialistic, and her undesirable traits were often the butt of their jokes, but she never thought the girl would turn against her in such a way. She was initially saddened to learn how Lori felt about her home, but that hurt had quickly turned into anger, and she refused to be made to feel ashamed.

The cheerleaders always daughter refuge at one of the end tables in the hall, and much to Michonne's delight, Lori was with the other girls, laughing away merrily.

Michonne slammed the can down in front of her, "Do you want to explain this?"

Lori's smile vanished as her eyes trailed up to meet Michonne's, "Oh, hey-"

"Do you have something that you'd like to say to me?"

"This was just a joke", Lori shrugged, motion inns towards the can.

"Oh okay, thank you for clarifying that for me", Michonne quipped dryly, "And thank you for showing me just how hollow you really are, I'm sure your mother would be proud that she has a created another vapid female to carry on her colourless legacy. Let's hope you marry rich and spend the rest of your days drooling after guys half your age too!"

Lori watched her with her mouth agape, before finally uttering, "Wait, what-"

"God!", Michonne rolled her eyes as she stormed away from the girl, feeling as if she had wasted a perfectly good speech on the girl.

"Hey"

She stopped when her path was blocked by a pensive looking Rick, "Oh, hi"

"What just happened there?"

She shook her head, "Nothing. Seriously, nothing. It was like talking to a brick wall"

His gaze sailed past her, obviously looking towards Lori and her friends, "Did she say somethan' to you?"

"No, she just made a little 'Joke' apparently", She adjusted her bag on her shoulder, "It's nothing, just stupid-"

Rick wasn't budging, still looking past her, "What kind of joke?"

"It doesn't matter-"

"It does"

"Not to me, it doesn't"

"Well it does to me", He finally looked back at her, "What did she do?"

"Rick, you can't do anything so just-"

"Why can't I?"

She frowned at him as she hissed, "Do I have to spell it out for you?"

He clenched his jaw, his expression growing serious, "Well, _certain_ thangs cancel that out"

Her eye was sprung up, "Like what?"

"Like whatever she did. I'm not going to spare her feelings of she starts trying to deliberately hurt you-"

"She hasn't hurt me. She pissed me off, at the most"

"Same thang", He stepped past her, and Michonne attempted to grab hold of his forearm, but he easily pulled out of her grip.

"Rick!", She breathed angrily, but there was no use, he had was already stalking towards her table, and all Michonne could do was growl in annoyance.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six:

"Oh hey, Rick"

Rick had already seen the can of beer that one of the girls beside Lori tried to hide, and it didn't take long to figure out what his ex-girlfriend had probably done, "What's the matter with you, Lori?"

The brunette frowned, still wearing a smile from whatever was said amongst the group of girls, "Excuse me?"

"You just couldn't move on without doing somethan' nasty, could you? You just had to go out of your way to get your chance to humiliate her?"

"What are you talking about?", Lori stood up and planted herself in front of him.

"What did you do with the can? The one that Jessie just put in her bag?"

Jessie blushed, turning her head the other way, while Lori continued to look at Rick incredulously, "What does it matter to you? It was a harmless joke-"

"Nothing you do is harmless. Almost everythan' you do is thought out, planned and practised", He spoke firmly, "If the two of you just stopped being friends and went your separate ways because of your bad attitude then fine, I would have thought that she was better off without you anyway, but the fact that you just couldn't wait to-"

"It was a _joke,_ Rick!", She hissed, leaning forward as she lowered her voice, "I can't believe you're talking to me like this!"

"Well, somebody needs to", He tilted his head at her, "Because you are turning into a real piece of work"

Lori narrowed her eyes at him, "You're sticking up for her, against me?"

"I don't need to stick up for her. If there's one person that doesn't have a problem speaking for themselves, it's her, but that doesn't mean I can't back up whatever she said"

"This isn't the first time you've done this-"

"Because this isn't the first time you've done somethan' horrible towards her; Did you forget that you lied to her about Shane? Did you forget that you were going to try to embarrass her at your party?"

Loris mouth opened and closed as she struggled with as rebuttal.

"You don't even have a reason to treat her the way you have, because she doesn't deserve it. Nothing you've done is justified"

The girls brown eyes immediately popped open, "Oh my god, do you like her?"

The question caught Rick off guard, leading him to respond a flat, "What?"

"You like her, don't you?", She peered at him with intense eyes, desperate for the answer.

He raked his fingers through his hair as he sighed, reluctant to answer the question so publicly, "You stay away from her and she'll stay away from you. That's it. There's no need to be childish"

Lori appeared to have come to her on conclusion, taking his aversion to her quizzing as a sign of to the truth. Her eyes examined every inch of him, before she brought her hand up, slapping him hard across the face. The impact echoed through the hall, causing those nearby to gasp in shock.

Needless to say, Rick was stunned, and he watched her as she spun around, grabbing her backpack off the floor and marching off without a second glance. Her friends all sprung up from their seats to follow her, sending Rick pointed looks. He growled to himself as he stalked off in the other direction, not entirely sure how to feel about what had just happened.

He never intended for Lori to find out about his feelings for Michonne anytime soon, considering they had only just ended their relationship a day ago. Even though he could no longer see even a trace of the girl he initially liked, it didn't mean he was willing to hurt her. However, he couldn't deny that a part of him felt strangely relieved. It was no longer a secret, so when he did chose to hang around Michonne's locker or sit beside her in the classes they shared, depending on how she felt about that of course, it wouldn't particularly come as a surprise to anyone.

"Sorry"

Michonne stopped a foot away from him as he sat on the brick wall by the school parking lot, having found a quiet place to reflect.

He looked up at her through his light lashes, "You haven't done anythan' wrong"

"Well, I know _that_ ", She smirked, taking a seat beside him, "But I can still say sorry"

He shook his head as the corners of his lips curled up into a smile, "Know it all"

"I think that title's reserved solely for you, 'Mr I-think-I'm-a-teacher-so-let-me-see-your-work'..."

Laughter burst from his lips, "What?"

"You heard me", She insisted, smiling with downcast eyes.

"I had to check your work because you don't like sticking to your point"

"Yeah", She snorted, rolling her eyes playfully.

He leered at her, studying the side of her face for a time, "She asked me if I liked you"

"Yeah...", She nodded, resting her elbows on her knees as she leant forward, "I thought it was something like that"

"I should have just admitted it", He Huffed, his gaze travelling up to the sky.

"No. Not like that"

"The outcome would have been the same"

"You couldn't keep defending me without her figuring it out for herself", There was a low level of annoyance in her tone, "I'm not some wallflower, Rick. I can stick up for myself and you don't need to step in"

He wore a frown as he looked at her, "I know you can. I never thought that you couldn't"

She sat up straight, looking in the other direction.

"Are you mad at me for wanting to say somethan'? Am I wrong for that?"

"No."

"Then what?"

Michonne turned her head back to face him, "Just don't feel like you have to, because you don't"

"But if I feel like I need to, then I will, and despite what you say, I have a feeling you would do the same", He countered, tilting his head at her.

Her gaze fell from his eyes to his cheek, "You should put something on that"

He shrugged, "It's fine."

She shifted, crossing her legs in front of her as she started to rummage in her bag, eventually retrieving a chocolate bar. Once she opened it up, she broke it in half and held out a piece, "Here"

"Thanks", Rick took it, "This isn't the first time I've seen you take chocolate out of that bag of yours"

"You've been watching me?", She teased, raising an eyebrow at him.

He nearly blushed.

"I try not to do it too much. My mom was a dentist, she didn't like me eating too much junk so I used to have to hide candy when I did get my hands on some"

Rick remembered what she had said to him about her mother at Lori's party, and he found himself uttering, "How?"

She glanced in his direction, responding without missing a beat, "Car crash. Four years ago."

He slowly inhaled, beginning to understand her and her father's plight, "I'm sorry"

"Thanks", She brought her thumb up to her mouth, her lips wrapping around the digit to remove the excess chocolate, "Just don't tell Daryl that I gave you his share"

Between the sad conversation topic and the visuals before him, Rick was conflicted, "Where is he?"

She waited until she finished what was in her mouth to speak, "Dropped out"

Rick mimicked her, "Really?"

"Yeah. He works now"

He thought of something else, "When do you start working?"

"Today, actually. Right after school"

"...What time do you finish? I can take you home?"

He was sure a shy smile flash across her face, "You don't have to, Daryl finishes the same time"

"Alright"

Rick did well to hide his disappointment. He wanted to spend more time with her, and he would prefer to do so outside of school, though sitting with her for the rest of their lunch break was something he very much enjoyed.

His afternoon classes went how he expected. Students would peak in his direction, trying to whisper to each other discreetly. Rick wasn't sure what to make of it, as on the one hand, he was glad that his peers didn't see him as above the gossip. He could be on the receiving end of it, just like everyone else, and it made him feel oddly included.

That was until Shane approached him while he made his way to the front of the school. It soon dawned on him that he would have to explain the compromising position he was in, "What's this I hear about you and some love triangle?"

Rick cleared his throat, "It's not a love triangle"

"I heard Lori broke up with you 'cause you wanted someone else? I thought y'all broke up already?"

"We did", Rick sighed as they walked through the double doors, "She stopped talking to Michonne over somethan' stupid, and she weren't being very nice so I told her to cut it out"

Shane began to frown at him, his lips poised to speak again, "Michonne's the girl that was at the party, right? White dress?"

Rick inwardly groaned, "That's the one"

"Where's she at? She here today?", His best friend began to grin wickedly as his eyes searched the other students around them.

Rick realised he would have to speak up, "Listen Shane, you need to know somethan'-"

"Yeah I know, she's got attitude, you told me and I found that out first hand-"

"No. I was gonna' say that there's a little truth in the rumours about me and Lori"

Shane's eyebrows sprung up as he looked back at Rick, "Yeah? Who? Who is it?"

"Michonne", He all but breathed her name, watching his friend from the corner of his eyes.

The other teen stopped dead in his tracks, "What?"

Rick stopped too, "That's why Lori slapped me today. She realised what was going on, what I felt"

"Is that why you tried to warn me off her?", Shane looked him from head to toe, his brow furrowing.

"No, I warned you because she didn't like you after you got into it with Daryl", Rick cocked his head to the side as he stated the obvious.

His best friend snorted dismissively, "Well I guess it all just works out for you then, don't it? You're just jumping from one girl to the other, huh? I thought I was the only sleaze around here?"

"That's not what I'm doing at all"

"You and Lori break up and you already got your sights on someone else?"

"What exactly are you mad about?", Rick squinted at him, "Michonne's been around here for a while now, but you only caught sight of her when she was all dressed up-"

"That ain't the point", His friend argued, "First Lori, now Michonne-"

"First Lori?", Rick repeated, "What's that mean?"

Shane's pursed his lips when he shook his head.

"You mean first Lori, as in you liked Lori first?"

"I did. You know I did-"

"No, I knew you said some pretty lewd thangs about her, just like you did with every other girl you come into contact with"

Shane glared at him, "Well how about we make this one fair game then?"

"That ain't happening", Rick shook his head as he placed his hands at his sides.

"You scared she'd pick the better man?"

The conversation was growing heated, and Rick knew he couldn't back down on the topic of Michonne, as Shane would never back down when it came to showing his strength or showing his charm, "If you're looking at it like that then I guess I already won"

"Oh, yeah? What's that mean then?", The agitated teen stepped closer to him.

"It means just that", Rick didn't move, his eyes locked on his.

"You make me sick, you know that? Mr high and mighty, never put a foot wrong, always the perfect example", Shane spat, "Even now you're trying to stand there like you ain't done a thang wrong-"

"I've never claimed to be perfect. If you think that's how I see myself then that's on you, but after being friends for as long as we have, you should know better than that"

"Oh just cut the ' _Miss_ _America_ ' talk out!", Shane mocked, throwing his hands in the air, "You're eighteen! Act like it! Just admit that you made a mess of thangs! You and Lori are over but you already staked your claim on Michonne-"

"Would it make you feel better to know that? To hear me admit that I could have handled thangs properly? You think that makes us even? My one mistake against your hundreds-"

Rick almost bit his tongue when Shane's fist hit his cheek, in the same area that Lori's hand had visited earlier that day. He stumbled back, but swiftly found his footing.

"Come on, I'm tired of talking", Shane demanded.

Rick straightened up, "You've wanted this for a while, huh?"

"You bet I have"

His friend charged at him and Rick saw no other option but to fight back, all the while he questioned how things between them could have escalate so quickly. He never got the impression that Shane had any animosity towards him, as he was doing just as well as Rick. Despite the quality of his friends school work being questionable, he did well on the football team, he never had a problem socialising with others, and he was spoilt rotten at home. Rick couldn't place where the anger was coming from.

They both subjected each other to harsh blows given the opportunity. Both evenly matched, both angry. The front of the building was virtually empty, and anyone who did see what was going on, watched from distance.

"Alright!", Rick barked, shoving Shane away from him so he could spit blood from his mouth, "What's the point here?!"

"I don't know!", Shane barked back, rubbing his head furiously, his eye swelling at a rapid rate, "I just don't like you right now, man"

"Yeah", Rick winced as he wiped the cut on his lip, "I got that. So we're done?"

"We're done"

Rick panted as he watched his friend pace, repeating to himself, "We're done"

With a cut above his brow and a busted lip, his clothes and hair dishevelled, Rick left the other teen and drove home, hoping that would be the last event for his day. It was only a few weeks ago that he had only a few things to worry about, and his life was relatively smooth sailing. Between breaking up with Lori, fighting with Shane, and exploring his budding romance with Michonne, he felt as if he had been uprooted and placed in unfamiliar territory.

When he arrived home, he tried to appear neater for his grandmother, hoping not to alarm her, "Grandma?!"

He strolled along the hallway, expecting to find her in the kitchen as he called out to her, but he didn't hear anything at all. He stepped out into the backyard, where her tools were sat by the rose bush, and it was evident that she had been out there recently.

"Grandma?!", Rick sprinted back into the home as panic took over. He searched every room on both floors, even his own room, before finally picking up the phone and attempting to call his grandfather.

When he didn't get an answer, he ran out the home entirely, scanning around the neighbourhood frantically.

"Afternoon Rick-"

"Mrs Mary, have you seen my grandmother?", Rick jogged over to the white picket fence when he noticed the older women on her lawn.

"Oh, yeah she was out back about an hour ago? We talked for a little while before I came inside", The silver haired woman informed, "Is everythan' alright?"

Rick ran his hand over his face, ignoring the stinging pain he felt, "Alright, thank you"

He backed up to his car, deciding he would be better off going to look for her if she wasn't around, however, he didn't have the faintest idea where to start.

"You called? I was just in the bank-"

"Grandma's not at home", Rick spoke hurriedly to his grandfather, "I'm in town looking for her"

"What?"

"I checked everywhere-"

"She said she was gonna' take a nap when I left, she was out in the yard-"

"Mrs Mary said the same thang"

"Oh god, uh…", His grandfather sounded a panicked as he did, "I'm gonna' head over to the store, she said she wanted some thangs from there, I told her we'll go when I got back-"

"Alright, I'll meet you there"

"Alright"

Rick dropped his phone in the passenger seat as the light turned green, about to take a turn that led to the grocery store when he saw the diner. He knew his grandmother always spoke fondly of the place, so he swiftly spun the vehicle in the other direction, which earned him a few unimpressed honks from other drivers.

" _If she's not in here then the bookstore_ …", Rick muttered to himself as he climbed out his vehicle, " _If she's not there then the florist's_.. "

The eatery wasn't busy at all, only a handful of customers sprinkled throughout, and to Rick's relief, his grandmother was one of them. She was sat by the window, staring out at the other side of the street, looking as if she was without a care in the world.

"Grandma…"

She jumped, peering up at him with wide eyes, "David! What are you doing here?"

Rick took a long calming breath as he sat in front of her, "I was looking for you"

"What on earth happened to you?", She grabbed a napkin from the dispenser.

"Just...boys being boys", He huffed, "Did you walk here?"

"It was lovely out.", She dipped the tip of the napkin in her glass of water, "Come here"

"I'm fine, Grandma-"

"You're bleeding"

"I thought you were working in the backyard"

"I was, I wanted to plant somethan' new where the roses are"

"And here's your desert, Patty", Michonne approached the table, sliding on a plate in front of the older woman with a slice of blueberry pie on it. Rick's eyebrows sprung up when he heard her use the shortened version of his grandmother's name.

"Oh! This looks delicious!", His grandmother still handed Rick the napkin, "And you swear this is the best one?"

"The best", Michonne nodded, frowning for a second when she saw the state of Rick.

"Mijone has been spoiling me here"

He looked at his grandmother with shock. While she had pronounced her name incorrectly, it was surprisingly close, "Yeah?"

"She made me a special shake", The older woman chuckled, "It had, uh, chocolate and, uh-"

"Cookies", Michonne added softly.

"And cookies! It was delicious. I told her they used to do more flavours here when I was a young girl but now it's just the few"

"I'll tell my manager to get on it"

"I hope so"

Michonne stepped away from the table, and Rick watched his grandmother tuck into her slice of pie. The relief he felt for finding her was suddenly replaced with sadness, and he couldn't help but ask, "You remember who I am, grandma?"

She looked up at him with a frown, her fork hovering in front of her mouth, "Of course I do. What kind of question is that?"

"...My name?"

Her eyes darted all over his face, "David"

Rick shook his head, his eyes beginning to sting, "David's my dad. He hasn't been around for a long time"

She lowered the fork back to her plate, "Well where is he?"

"...I don't know, we haven't seen him since I was a boy. He or my mom… your daughter?"

His grandmother peered around her, appearing both astonished and confused, "Oh…"

"I'm Rick", He announced with a tight chest, causing her to look back at him with wide eyes.

"...My grandbaby?", She nearly whispered.

"Yeah", He nodded, leading a tear rolling down his cheek.

"Now hold on, what's the matter? Who upset you?", She moved the plate aside, then taking hold of his hand, "Tell me, son?"

He gave her a weak smile, "No one, I swear. I've just missed you a lot, that's all"

She smiled back, warmth radiating from her eyes, "Well I've missed you too. I'm glad you're here, we can get somethan' to eat. Would you like that?"

"More than anythan'..."

"Alright", She looked towards the rest of the diner, "There's a lovely waitress here. She's been spoiling me since I got here"

"Yeah? Michonne's been looking after you?"

"She has", She lowered her voice as she leaned in closer, "But I think you said her name wrong, son"

Rick chortled, holding her hand between his, "I probably did"

Her eyes combed over his face, "I remember that laugh, and that handsome smile. You're an image of your grandfather"

"I need to call him, let him join us"

"Oh yes, tell him to come. We'll get him a hotdog with mustard. He likes that"

He beamed at her, "He does"

Rick dreaded the day when his grandmother no longer recognised the people around her, or all the great things that had happened in her life, and he knew that the more he thought about it, the more it would tear him apart, so he decided to enjoy every moment he had with her, while he could.

His grandfather eventually joined them, and he looked as relieved as Rick had when he finally laid eyes on the woman they both cared so deeply about. Although nothing was said aloud, as they didn't want to distress his grandmother, they both knew that from that point on, they could no longer leave the woman alone at any stage at the day. It was a responsibility that Rick welcomed if it meant keeping her safe.

"Here, Rick", His grandfather held out a small wad of bills, "Go up and pay for all this, please"

"Alright"

He slid out of the booth and made his way to the till, pleased to see Michonne stood behind the counter, as he had wanted to speak to her, "Hey"

"Hey, give me a second while I…", She hit the cash register hard, causing the draw to pop out, "There"

"...I'm glad you didn't decide to hit me today too", He smirked.

"That's not funny", She shoulder, "What happened?"

"Shane. We got into a stupid argument"

"About?"

"A whole bunch of thangs", He lied, not wishing to worry her.

She narrowed her eyes at him, "I don't think I believe that"

"I'm gonna' need you to", He wasn't above begging.

She eyed him suspiciously for a second, and Rick got the impression that she would agree, but only for the moment, "Fine"

He lowered his voice, "Thank you for keeping an eye on her…"

She shook her head, "It's fine. She's… she's great. Funny, too. I didn't know if you were coming or not… I just kept offering her food so she'd stay…"

"That's one way to keep her here", He snickered, glancing back at his grandparents, "But thank you. I mean it"

She glowed, "No problem".

Rick could hardly believe the first day of the week could be such a draining one. He had been slapped, punched and he even cried, but he did have two good things to think about that night. The first being his grandmother's ability to remember Michonne's name, even if it was incorrectly. She wasn't even able to remember his name anymore, and it made him question what it was about Michonne that made her stand out to everyone else.

Which led him to think about Michonne even more than usual, and the impact she was having on his life. Ever since he began to focus on her, nearly everything else around him had changed, which he decided was for the better.

In spite of everything that had happened the previous day, Rick woke up with a positive attitude, ready to start the day on a high note. He had breakfast with his grandmother while his grandfather prepared to busy himself for the day. By the time he left for school, he was ready to face everything and everyone.

Everyone but Lori.

The last thing he expected to see was the girl stood by herself by Michonne's locker, her arms folded over her chest, wearing her cheerleading uniform. Rick slowed to a stop in front of her with an eyebrow raised, "What are you doing here?"

She was visibly tense, wearing an annoyed expression, "What, are you her keeper now?"

Rick almost groaned, "Look, I'm sorry about how thangs played out yesterday-"

"Have you always liked her?", Lori ejected, "This whole time?"

"Not this whole time, and I don't think you really want me to go into all of that"

"So when? Because the two of you didn't even talk before, then all of a sudden-"

"That's exactly what it was. It kinda just happened suddenly", He admitted, "But she only had a small role in what happened between me and you, and not the way you might think either"

Her shoulders fell, "What's that's supposed to mean?"

"It means the way you treated her, and a couple other people for that matter, wasn't somethan' I liked to see. It wasn't somethan' I wanted to be around"

"Okay", She scoffed, "You've said that three times already, I get it, you think I'm a horrible person"

"No. I just think you've got a horrible attitude"

She shook her head, chuckling disbelievingly, "Even better"

He glanced around him, "So what are you doing here?"

She bent down and scooped her bag off the floor, "I wanted to talk to her. That's all"

Rick nodded, "Got it"

She also looked around before sighing, "Well she's not coming, so I'm leaving"

He didn't say anything else, instead he just watched her stomp off down the hall, snaking her way through the steady flow of students that trailed the halls. He stood around for a moment longer, waiting to see if Michonne would actually appear, but instead he saw Shane. He didn't stop to greet him like he usually would have done, and instead he gave Rick a quick nod of the head, which Rick returned.

Michonne didn't turn up for their class together either, and by lunch, Rick had decided that she wasn't in entirely. Knowing she never skipped school for trivial reasons, he figured her absence was due to her father again. He could only hope it wasn't anything too serious, but the only way for him to find out, was to go by the trailer park after school.

In the few times he had been to the mobile homes site, he always noticed a buzz in the atmosphere. Children would be running around, adults sat around laughing and joking, a radio would be loud enough for all to hear, but that afternoon was different. Only two or three people moved around the outside of their homes as Rick drove in, children's toys laid untouched in the dirt, empty bottles sitting in front of closed doors. It made him feel even more uneasy.

He stopped outside Michonne's home, still looking around as he approached the door and knocked three times. He didn't hear anything at all for a time, and he raised his hand to knock again, when the door swung open and Michonne appeared.

"Hey", He peered at her, sensing something was wrong from the serious expression she wore, "You okay?"

She nodded, moving aside, "Come in"

He stepped inside the home, noticing that something wasn't right in the space in front of him. The couch looked like it had been moved, so had the coffee table, and a lamp was no longer on the side table. He turned to look at her as she closed the door, "What happened?"

She huffed, walking around him, "A lot"

He watched her take a seat on take a seat on the couch before he followed, perching on the edge of the coffee table in front of her, "Where's your dad?"

"He's gone to a doctor's appointment. He's fine"

"Then what happened?"

Her eyes were downcast, and she fidgeted with the cuffs of her sweat shirt, "Daryl left. I don't know where he is, or if he's coming back, he just left"

"Why?", He frowned.

She hesitated, struggling to start an explanation, "He picked me up from work, and we came back here, my dad was out, and we were just hanging out until he left to go to the store, I stayed… started studying… then there was someone at the door so I answered it, and it was Daryl's dad"

Rick's gaze didn't leave her face.

"He was drunk and looking for him, I told him he wasn't here, and…", Her brows began to furrow, "I remember him grabbing me. Grabbing me by arm and pushing me back in here…"

Rick's blood ran cold.

"I think I was screaming as loud as I could, and just hitting him and kicking him and it felt like it went on for hours but I know it probably wasn't anywhere near that long-"

"Did he hurt you?"

She began to shake her head, but stopped, "I don't even know how to answer that. He scared me. I was scared. He was strong, even though he was falling all over the place he still held onto me… then Daryl was there. He… dragged him outside… I saw a lot of blood. I thought he was just punching him, but then I saw the switch blade…"

Rick swallowed, "He kill him?"

"No… Someone took him to the hospital… and Daryl just… he just left", She used her sleeve to while the tears from her cheek.

He could see that she was deeply upset, but Rick needed a few seconds to process everything that she had just told him. It was the last thing he was expected to hear, "I'm so sorry"

"So am I", She huffed, finally looking up at him, "It still doesn't feel real"

He reached out and took her hand between his, "He didn't say anythan' at all?"

She shook her head, "No. Nothing"

"...You think he left town?"

She nodded, "Yeah. He wouldn't stay anywhere else, I think"

He brought her fingers up to his lips, placing a kiss on the soft skin, "He's probably just going to wait until things cool off here"

"I hope so", She sniffed, wiping her eyes a second time, "Thanks for coming by, you didn't have to"

"I wanted to make sure you were okay"

She gave him a small smile, "What about you?"

"I'm fine", He insisted, "As long as you are"

Her fingers curled around his, and Rick found himself unable to tear his eyes from hers. He hadn't been able to touch her like that before, and the most contact they had shared was a hug, but it seemed like he needed more than that. He wanted to stroke the skin that covered her jaw, or be close enough to feel her breath tickle his lips. He wanted to show her affection like he had no other.

"...Can I kiss you?"

Something in her expression brightened, and she answered with a little nod. Rick's heart beat seemed louder than usual as he leaned forward, stopping when his lips were less than an inch away from hers. He ran the tip of his nose along the side of hers, while her hands sat at the base of his neck. When he finally did press his lips against hers, he felt his body awaken. They were even softer than he imagined, urging him to take them between his own, his tongue running over the moist skin tenderly. He couldn't think of a time where kissing alone made his head spin.

In defiance of his stirring loins, Rick had to pull away to look at her, "Was that alright?"

"Yeah", She breathed, her thumbs brushing his jaw bone.

"...I'm here, alright? And we'll both be here when Daryl gets back"

"Okay", She nodded, resting her head on his shoulder.

He turned his head a fraction to kiss the tip of her nose, "Alright".


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven:

"...The essay was only meant to be three thousand words, Michonne, and while I truly do admire your ability to go above and beyond, this is… a lot"

Michonne narrowed her eyes at the silver haired woman, "I did what you asked-"

"And then some…", Mrs Peletier muttered as she turned back to her desk, "Trim it down. And stick to the subject! You have this tendency to branch off into so many different topics and you lose sight of the question you're meant to be answering"

Michonne exhaled tiredly, looking down at the essay in her hand, "I don't see what the problem is, I do the work, I've always done the work, in fact, I do more than just the work and-"

"I know, Michonne. You're the model student. Now go", Mrs Peletier called over her shoulder as she began collecting her belongings together, "Have a nice weekend! And try to enjoy yourself. Don't just sit there working on that"

"I do enjoy myself, thank you very much", Michonne huffed, offended at the insinuation.

The teacher cackled, "Your tone tells me otherwise"

The teen adjusted her backpack as she turned and stalked out the room, "Fine!"

Despite the battles she often had with Mrs Peletier, Michonne liked that she could argue her point with the woman, as most of her other teachers ran when they saw her coming.

"How'd that go?", Glenn queried, waiting for her outside the classroom.

"I have to trim it down", She responded dryly as they strolled down the hall together.

Glenn cringed, "Yeah, I thought that would happen. Rick told me you went over by like two thousand words"

"It's all _informative_!", She protested sternly, earning her a chuckle from the boy.

"I'm sorry, but it's just funny how you get all mad about your work", Glenn offered an apologetic nudge, "Oh, hey, are you going to the game later?"

"Nah, I've got work", She was being truthful, but the fact of the matter was, even if she didn't have work, she wouldn't go. For reasons she still didn't understand, she managed to distract Rick when he was on the field, which she did find oddly flattering, as it was as if he couldn't be within yards with her and not pay her any attention.

"Ah, that's a shame. I think it's a big game today. Like really big. Rival schools and all that"

Her eyebrows sprung up, "Just like in the movies"

"Just like in the movies"

"So Maggie's practicing again?"

"Yeah. Lori's made them do it every day this week"

Michonne only tensed by a tiny degree when she heard her ex-friend's name, "Ah. That sucks"

"Yeah".

Glenn had somehow managed to become someone she walked to work with, when Rick wasn't around to drive her there. She enjoyed his company, and the two them would often laugh together along the way.

There was no denying that she missed Daryl, though, and she spent a large portion of her waking hours wondering where he was, and if he were safe. She wished he would send her some kind of sign that he were fine, just a phone call or a letter even, something that would put her mind at ease.

Working at the diner wasn't particularly fun for her, and she found herself always tired, with barely enough time to study as she'd like, but bills had to be paid, and until her father found employment again, it would have to do.

He was doing well with his sobriety though, which she was more than happy about. She imagined he was still struggling every now and then, but he seemed determined to get back on his feet, and she was just as determined to help him, so when he sat her down when she got home from work that Friday night, she was more than happy to hear what good news he had for her.

"I met a man today when I was at the bar, just paying off the last of my tab, and we just got to talking and he was telling me that he was here from the city, he came down here to meet with a friend but…", Her father paced back and forth in front of the coffee table, "...He has his own games publishing company and I told him what happened with our games and… long story short, he offered me a job"

Michonne's tired eyes soon popped open, "Really?"

"Yep! He said he they were looking for an associate creative director and- and he even knew my game! He said his son loved it!"

She jumped up out of her seat, "I'm so happy for you dad!"

Her father swiftly stepped around the table, "You know what this means?"

"You have a job!"

"It means we can move back to the city!"

Her smile immediately tightened, "Oh… yeah-"

"I told Jared, his name's Jared, about our situation and he said I could use a company car to get to work for the first three months, and in that time we can sort out where we're going to live and-and-"

"Dad, this is great, really great, and I'm so happy for you-"

"For us! This is for us, honey. We're getting our chance to get it all back", He grabbed her in a bear hug, wrapping his arms around her tightly, "I'm going to take care of you again. You won't have to work and… we can pay for college, you can go back to being a teenager again. I promise that you can"

"Yeah", She sighed, "...I thought you were going to tell me that it's been three months since your last drink..."

"It has, hasn't it?", He chuckled, "I almost forgot. I was too excited to tell you about the job"

"Either way, you're doing great, dad"

Michonne was genuinely glad about his new job, and what it meant for her and her father, but naturally, the prospect of moving wasn't something she was too keen on, for many reasons, and one of the biggest reasons arrived at her home an hour after her father had broken the news.

"Hey", Rick smiled tiredly as she opened the front door.

"Hey", She greeted, stepping aside to let him in, "You look exhausted"

"I am"

"You should have gone home"

"I've barely saw you today", He pointed out, turning to face her as she closed the door.

"You picked me up this morning-"

"We were in the car for ten minutes-"

"We saw each other at lunch-"

"Then you went to study"

"We had class together-"

"Then I had to go straight to practise", He tilted his head at her as he raised his brow, "See?"

She couldn't suppress her giggle in time, "Fine, you're right"

"I am", He soon closed the space between them, taking hold of her waist before he pressed his lips against hers, always managing to send a shiver down her spine with his kisses.

But with her father only in the next room, she didn't wish to get carried away, "I need to talk to you"

His eyes darted all over her face as he watched her pull away, "About?"

She took hold of his hand, leading him down the hall to her bedroom, not entirely sure what his reaction would be. They hadn't put any label on their relationship, as they had agreed to take things slow and get to know each other better. It was something Michonne was comfortable with, and she felt better about them handling things at a snail's pace.

"So…", She began, sitting beside him on her bed, crossing her legs in front of her, "...My dad told me when he got home that he got a job… almost doing what he was doing before"

"Yeah? That's great", He grinned, laying his jacket down beside him.

"It is…", She lowered her voice, though she knew her father was probably fast asleep, "But it's in the city and he's talking us about moving…"

Rick's grin vanished, "Yeah?"

"Yeah"

He slowly nodded as he absorbed her words, making no attempt to speak for a time, before he finally asked, "How do you feel about that?"

She scoffed, "Like I just got given an orange for Christmas"

A chuckled burst from his lips, "That's one way to put it"

"I don't want to move, I actually… I like it here. I like it here more than when we were in the city"

"Did you tell him that?"

"No. Not yet, I didn't want to rain on his parade"

"...I think I'd _prefer_ it if you stayed here"

She bit back a smile, "I'd prefer that too. It's not like I need to go with him… I can stay here. I can take care of myself-"

"Stay here on your own?", The concern was evident in his tone.

"Yeah", She nodded, "I pay the bills… I'm used to being on my own a lot anyway-"

"I don't like that Michonne"

He didn't need to explain why he felt that way, she knew, "Daryl's dad hasn't been seen since that night-"

"Doesn't mean he won't come back"

"That's true. But… I don't think he's stupid enough to come back here again. Everyone knows what he did and… I won't live my life in fear because of him. That's not fair. I shouldn't have to be scared to be on my own because of him-"

"I agree with that. I don't think that should to be the case at all but… the fact is, he's out there somewhere and no one knows where… it'll be dangerous for you to be on your own. It shouldn't be, but it will"

She huffed as she dropped her gaze to her hands, knowing he was right, but she didn't want to discuss the man any further, "How's your grandma?"

"She's doing fine", Rick answered weakly, casting his own gaze elsewhere, "She was watching some old western when I stopped at the house"

Michonne smiled, "Yeah? I didn't know she liked those kinds of movies"

"I'm sure she thinks she's in them. She always gets so caught up with the storyline"

She chortled quietly, "You need to get her a hat and matching boots then"

He began to smile, "She'd love that"

Michonne reached out and took his hand in hers, "Bring her by the diner tomorrow… I can make her one of her favourite shakes"

"...I don't know", His thumb brushed over her knuckles, "She's not… the last time we took her out… she was scared… or nervous… I don't know but, I don't want to see that happen again"

"Then I'll bring it over for her? I finish at three…"

He finally looked at her again, "You don't have to do that"

"I want to see her. It's been awhile since someone's made me laugh the way she does"

His brow furrowed, though he still grinned, "I'm sure I make you laugh"

"Not like Patty", She teased.

He shook his head as he snickered at her, "That's a fair statement"

Sitting with Rick in her room, usually while her father slept, was one of her favourite things to do. It gave her a chance to talk with him, uncensored, about everything and anything she wanted, but still, they would eventually end up rolling around on her bed in a kissing frenzy, and that night would be no different, or so she thought.

She was soon on her back, with Rick laying over her, one of his legs between hers and his hand clamped on her thighs. Kissing him was something she could handle, quite easily, but they often reached a stage where fevers were running high, and between the feeling of his bulge against her hip, and his thigh against crotch, she could only handle so much.

Boys were never a focus for Michonne, and so she had never had a boyfriend, and she had never had sex. She had kissed only two other boys in her life, but never to that extent, and so she felt overwhelmed with the direction of things, yet, not enough to want it to stop. She was curious, and turned on, so she wanted to see how far things would go before she saw fit to object.

However, Rick was a gentleman. His hands only ever rested on her neck, waist, hips or thighs, always above her clothes, and never anywhere else. She adored that about him, but the fire burning in her heat, didn't. She encouraged him to touch her, encouraging him to explore her body further, and she managed to strip him off his t-shirt and jeans and herself of her jersey. He moved between her legs, only two thin pieces of fabric stopping his member from making contact with her centre.

"Condom?", She whispered against his lips, her fingers intertwined in her hair.

She was sure she heard him groan as he whispered back, "Yeah"

He sat up, retrieve his jeans from the end of the bed, while she rolled her underwear off and unhooked her bra. Her heart was thumping in her chest with excitement, and only a little fear. As much as she wanted things to go slowly between the two of them, she felt ready, more than ready. It felt right.

Once his length donned the rubber, he leaned forward over her again, resting on one of his forearms while he took himself in his hands, guiding his organ to her entrance. His steely gaze never left her face, and he watched her carefully as he began to insert himself.

Feeling his tip wasn't so bad. It was strange, not something she was familiar with, and she would have been happy if it stayed that way, but as he sank further, her body tensed, and she yelped in pain, and possibly shock.

He peered down at her with concern, "What's wrong?"

"Yeah… fine. Go on", She nodded, trying to adjust herself to the brand new feeling.

He watched her closely for a few more moments before doing as he was told. He pushed further, and she managed to mask another yelp as a moan.

It was silly, and she should have told him that it was new territory for her, but she was learning that Rick was very much the gentlemen, and would have possibly stopped if he did know the truth.

He began to rock into her, and it made her core ache, feeling a mixture of both pleasure and pain, not an unbearable pain however. The kind one could over look with the right kind of distraction, so she clasped her hand at the back of his neck, pulling him down to kiss her.

It helped, considerably, and she began to loosen up, allowing herself to be enveloped by him. His movements were controlled, as if he knew exactly what he were doing, increasing the pace gradually, while their tongues lapping over one another in time with his thrusts. Her mind was blank, and all she could think about was him, and what he was doing to her.

He upped the pace another notch, and she laced her arms around his shoulders, holding onto him tightly. She couldn't quite believe that she was having sex with Rick, the teen she had thought of for countless days and nights before. As far as she was concerned, he was absolutely beautiful, not just physically but in every aspect, and she couldn't have picked a better person to have the moment with if she tried.

While Michonne wasn't expecting to have an orgasm, she could tell Rick was near his release, as he lavished her with kisses, his thrusts slowed but just as forceful, causing little cries to escape from her mouth into his. He drove deeper and deeper, until she felt his member throb and jerk inside of her, leading his head to bow, falling in the crook of her neck. She held him, allowing him to empty his load while she toyed with his tresses.

"You didn't…", He sighed after a moment of silence.

She frowned for a second, unsure what he meant, but it soon dawned on her, "Oh… It's okay"

"...Did you like it, though?"

She nodded as if he could see her, "Yeah. It was great"

"...It couldn't have been that great"

A barely audible chuckle left her, "Loads of girls don't have an orgasm the first time. It's pretty common actually… even after that"

"Really?... Wait..."His head snapped up, and he sat up, resting on his forearms to look at her, "Excuse me?"

She could have kicked herself, but instead she blurted out, "I'm a virgin. Well, was a virgin."

His eyes widened, and his mouth fell open.

"I know, probably should have told you that a while ago…"

He blew an unsteady breath as he bowed his head a second time, "You know... Lori told me that you hadn't had a boyfriend before… but I didn't really think too deep into it... and we're taking thangs slow… well, not anymore…"

"...It was still perfect though"

"I wish you had told me. I would have been a little more-"

"It was still _perfect_ , Rick", She insisted, cupping his face with her hands, "I swear"

His eyes combed over her face, as if he were looking for any trace of a lie. When he couldn't find anything, he huffed quietly, "Well I guess we aren't really 'just friends' anymore"

Her eyebrows sprung up, "Just friends? I wouldn't have called it that. I don't kiss Glenn or Maggie the way I kiss you"

"...How do you kiss them then?"

She covered her mouth with her hand as she cackled, and he buried his face in her neck, chuckling against her. To say she was happy, would be a huge understatement.

The next day she woke with a smile on her face that spread from ear to ear. She didn't care that she had to be up early for work on a Saturday, or that she'd have to spend the next several hours running around, serving customers, she did it all with the same large smile on her face, her mind often traveling to the night before. She would have preferred if he could have stayed a little longer, but they were both tired after long, tiring days.

It was coming up towards the end of her shift when she knew her good mood wouldn't last any longer. Lori and a friend, strolled into the diner, laughing and joking as they found a booth to sit in. It wasn't anything new, as Lori would often come in on the weekends, and while she'd never do or say anything openly offensive to Michonne, she'd do her best to get under her skin, regardless.

As much as she had grown to dislike the girl, Michonne couldn't entirely blame her. Lori always had an immaturity about her, and coupled with the fact that she knew that something was going on between Michonne and Rick, Lori's behaviour was expected.

It was annoying, very annoying, but expected.

"I asked for a vanilla milkshake. This one takes like chocolate"

Michonne stared at Lori as she folded her arms over her chest, "Your vanilla milkshake tastes like chocolate?"

Lori pushed the cup towards her, by the edge of the table, "Change it"

She took a moment to respond, resisting the urge to empty it on her, "Sure. Right after I'm done with another customer"

"But you came here first, so you deal with me first"

Michonne frowned at her, "Fine, I will deal with you first. How long are you going to keep this up? Is this how you plan to spend your weekends from now on? Revolved around me?"

"My weekends are not Revolved around you", Lori snapped back, her top lip curling in disgust.

"But you're always here? Same booth, different airhead", Michonne glanced in the other girls direction, just as her mouth fell agape.

"I can come in here if I want to. You should be grateful because It's my money you depend on"

"You spend all of five dollars here", Michonne rolled her eyes, "So just cut it out. If you're coming here to make trouble, then I'll make sure that you and the rest of your minions aren't allowed in again"

Lori's head reeled back, "You can't do that-"

"If you keep this up, then I will", She motioned her hand towards the milkshake, "So would you like me to change this for you? Or did you realise how stupid your request sounds?"

The girl was seething, glaring at Michonne from her seat before finally sliding out the booth, hissing to her friend, "Let's go"

Michonne was secretly glad that the girl didn't call her bluff, as she was sure she had no authority to do such a thing, but luckily for her, Lori was the brightest girl. She did think it was a shame that things between them had turned so sour, and she hoped that it wouldn't stay that way. She didn't think they would ever be friends again, but she didn't wish to bicker with her whenever they were in close proximity, either.

Rick was stood by his car, waiting in the parking lot at the end of her shift, and she was glad to see that he seemed pleased to see her too, "Hey"

"Hey", She flashed him a wide smile as she approached, "You look at tired as I feel"

"I was gonna' say the same to you", He snickered, resting his hand on her waist as he kissed her cheek.

"I hope you haven't eaten anything", She held up the white paper bags with food in them.

He froze as he opened the passenger door for her, "You didn't have to do that-"

"I wasn't going to turn up without your grandmother's milkshake"

"She would love that…"

"Exactly"

Michonne had only been to Rick's home on two other occasions, simply because he would often take her home from work after a long day, but the two visits were enough for her to fall in love with it entirely.

She wasn't one for grandeur, even though it was a large property, it was incredibly homely, with plenty of images of his family splashed on every wall. She took her time looking through as many as she can, taking glee in seeing the younger versions of Rick. He didn't understand her fascination, but still left her to it.

When they arrived at his home, they found his grandmother sitting in front of the TV, in what Rick told Michonne was her new favourite chair.

"Hey Grandma", He called, looking at the television strangely as he approached her, "What are you watching?"

"Oh, hey you two! It's uh, a…", His grandmother picked up the DVD case beside her, "A Quentin Tarantino movie"

"I can see that", Rick replied dryly.

Michonne bit back a chuckle, "Are you hungry Patty?"

"Oh I think I could eat", The woman eagerly sat forward in her chair, "Rick, pause that for me, I don't want to miss anythan'..."

"I'd rather you did miss somethan'...", He shook his head as he picked up the remote from the side table, "Where's Grandpa?"

"Around here somewhere. Probably trying to fix somethan' he broke"

Michonne sniggered, leading Rick to look at her, so she shrugged as she whispered, "She's just funny"

"Did you see what she was watching?", He hisses back, tilting his head to the TV.

"I can hear you, you know? And I've seen you watch worse", The older woman called over her shoulder as she shuffled out the room in her pink fluffy slippers, "Come on Mijone, show me what you got"

Michonne grinned as she followed her, "Yes ma'am"

Spending the afternoon was his family was exactly what she expected it to be; fun filled. She enjoyed listening to Rick's grandmother's quips, and despite her declining health, she was quick with her replies and her smile could light up the room.

Michonne couldn't even begin to imagine how Rick felt. She could see he cared about her more than anything, and watching their exchanges was something precious, but she could sense a sadness in his eyes whenever he looked at her. There wasn't much Michonne could offer him to help ease his heartache, but she would still try her best to be present for him, the same way he was with she faced her own problems with her father.

Rick drove her home later that evening, as per usual, but he didn't stay, as her father was home, and she intended to talk to him about his new job offer. After changing into her favourite jersey and socks, she joined the man in the living room, where he was going over an introductory pack from Jared.

"...I missed having to read over things like this. I missed having to read, entirely", He joked, holding up one of the sheets from the coffee table, "It's been so long"

"Yeah… I'm excited for you dad", She began softly, "But I think I want to stay here…"

"Huh? What's that honey?", He looked up from his task.

"I said I want to stay here. I don't want to move back to the city just yet"

His face fell blank, "Wha- really?"

"Yeah", She nodded, her dreads bouncing in its high ponytail, "I like it here… I still have school to finish and I have work, and… I just don't want to leave anytime soon"

His brown eyes darted all over her face, "I can't just leave you here-"

"I'm _eighteen_ , dad"

"That's still too young to fend for yourself-"

"I have a job, I pay the bills here, I've done the cleaning and the cooking and I've taken care of myself since I was fourteen"

"That's not true, Michonne"

"You and mom were always busy with work. I'd be home by myself until seven or eight o'clock at night. I've spent weekends alone, there were times when the most I got from you guys was a text message and that's it. It's nothing new to me, dad"

Her father slowly inhaled, "That was- we messed up there, I get that, I know that, but that doesn't mean I should abandon you-"

"You're not, though. I'd hope that I'd still see you every chance I can"

"You'd be in a whole different town-"

"Dad", She stressed, "This is what I want, please? I'd still call you if I need anything, we'd still talk all the time, but I just want to continue things here"

He shook his head as he dropped his paper on the table, "I can't believe this, Michonne"

She moved from the armchair to the couch, sitting beside him, "Please don't be mad about this"

"I'm not. Just… upset. I would have preferred that you were with me. You're meant to be. You're my daughter and I'm meant to take care of you", He huffed as he turned his head to look at her, "But I can't force you. I can't force you to do anything at all… I'd just hope you wouldn't rule put wanting to come up and join me one day"

"I won't", She dropped her head on his shoulder, "Thank you"

He tipped his head, kissing her on top of hers, "No problem, honey"

While Michonne would never admit to her father, or Rick, that the prospect of living on her own was a little scary, there was no denying that she was looking forward to the new challenge. Like her father, she would have preferred that the two of them were together, but she felt some degree of comfort knowing that her father was at his best when he was needed, specifically in a work environment. He would thrive in his new job, and she looked forward to seeing him do so.

She drifted off to sleep with ease that night, falling into a deep slumber almost immediately, and she would have continued to do so, if it wasn't for the sound of a rattling window. She sat up, looking around her room with narrowed eyes as she listened for any further movement.

When the rattling sounded off again, she kneeled on her bed and peaked through the blinds.

"You gonna' let me in, or what?"

Daryl stood by her window in his usual scruffy appearance, raising an eyebrow at her beneath his dark tresses.

Michonne yanked the blinds up by the cord and pulled up open the window, "You didn't even leave a note or anything"

The teen shrugged, "You saw what I did… I had to go"

She nearly glared at him, "You could have at least let me know you were okay? A phone call?"

"I didn't come here for all that 'Chonne"

"Well you're going to get it", She snapped back, crossing her arms as she leaned on the window ledge, "Where did you go?"

"Around…"

She rolled her eyes at him.

"...He ain't troubled you since?"

She shook her head, "No. Not since. Nobody knows where he is..."

"Good".

Michonne was secretly elated to see him, but due to the nature of their friendship, she wouldn't let him know that, "I think have a boyfriend now"

His eyebrows sprung up briefly, before he frowned, "Rick?"

She nodded, "Yeah"

He snorted, "Thought as much"

"You've missed some stuff"

"So you gon' let me in and tell me?", He rasped, glancing over his shoulder.

"Are you going to run off again?", She quizzed.

"...Not unless you're chasing me…"

A dry chuckle erupted from her, and she gave her best friend a warm smile, "Then I guess you're not going anywhere then"

 **THE END**


End file.
